Daddy's Girl
by dncnmndy
Summary: Sequel to A New Friend. It is not necessary to read that story first, but I do recommend it. A person from Jessica's past is released from prison and threatens the people that Jessica has come to love. How much damage will he do before he is stopped?
1. Chapter 1

* * *

This is the sequel to A New Friend. You don't need to read that one first, but I would recommend it. Also, this chapter is particularly long (for me, anyway), and I can't guarantee that all chapters will be this long, but I'll try.

Disclaimer: I do not own Walker Texas Ranger or any of its characters.

As always, please review. Criticism welcome!

* * *

"Your Honor, with all due respect, I really don't understand-"

"I don't see what you could possibly misunderstand, Counselor. It has recently come to my attention that much of the evidence found in Mr. Juarez's home was obtained under an illegal search. That is grounds for a mistrial. Furthermore, I am granting the request that Mr. Juarez be released from Huntsville pending a new trial."

Alex Cahill-Walker looked defiantly up at Judge Brownstein. She knew that the judge had a reputation of favoring defendants, but this was going way too far. "Your Honor, the crimes Mr. Juarez is accused of range from running a prostitution ring to drug trafficking, to attempted murder! You'll recall, Judge, that Officer Steven Jones was shot by one of Mr. Juarez's men. He left behind a wife and two children. And you're telling me that the man responsible for that tragedy deserves to go free?"

Stuart Hertzman, defense attorney to the stars, saw his opportunity to jump in. "Your Honor, my client and the other residents of his home were simply defending themselves against possible intruders. The officers did not have a search warrant, nor did they adequately identify themselves to my client before barging into his home. What happened to Officer Jones is certainly regrettable, but my client is not responsible for the negligence of the officers that stormed his home." Hertzman stole a glance at Alex, only long enough to offer a smug smile to counter her stony glare that was directed at him. He turned back to the judge to continue his speech. "My client will willingly turn over his passport to the court. He has no intention of doing anything that will jeopardize the clearing of his good name. Something he has been trying to do for the last seven years."

Judge Brownstein slammed her gavel. "So ordered." She declared, before standing and leaving the courtroom.

After she left, Raul Juarez shook his lawyers hand and walked over to where Alex was standing with Walker.

"Admirable arguments Madam Assistant District Attorney. Perhaps they were just not admirable enough."

"Just wait, Juarez, I'll bury you during your new trial. Just like I buried you in the old one." Alex said angrily.

"Ah, Counselor. You forget that you no longer have the physical evidence that was _planted_ before my first trial. I hate to say it, but perhaps it was the evidence, and not you that secured my conviction." With that, he turned and left, presumably to go give interviews to the press that was almost certainly waiting outside.

"Walker, he's right. Without all that evidence, we really don't have a chance of getting a guilty verdict again." Alex said despondently.

"Alex, don't worry. Gage is on it." Walker said confidently. "Anything Juarez does, we'll know about it."

* * *

When the possibility of the declaration of a mistrial for Juarez had come up about a month earlier, Alex had come to Walker, asking for help. Walker, Alex, and the other Rangers had decided that the only way to get the dirt on Raul Juarez was to have someone inside his organization. Walker and Trivette were out; they had been a part of the "illegal" search of Juarez's home. That left Gage and Sydney. Though Sydney was a competent Ranger, everyone agreed that a man was more likely to be recruited for the long term, as opposed to a one night stand. Plus, Sydney had been somewhat uncomfortable when the idea of her going undercover for Juarez was broached. Walker had no intention of sending her on this mission if she didn't think she could do it. At this point, Gage had agreed to go undercover as one of Juarez's henchmen. They got him in as fast as possible, knowing that once Juarez was released, it would be unlikely that he would recruit any new men. As they Rangers have done so many times before, they staged a fight at a local bar where Juarez's number two man often hung out. Gage had won the "fight" and been accepted into Juarez's home. That was that. Now that Juarez was released, it was Gage's job to get any evidence that could be used against Juarez in his second trial.

* * *

Walker and Alex left the courthouse together, anxious to get back to Ranger Headquarters and talk with Trivette and Sydney. They were busy going through Juarez's past, combing for anything that could be used against him in his new trial. When they walked into Walker's office, the two Rangers were bent over their desks, reading file after file on Juarez and his known associates. So far, they hadn't come up with much. Witnesses tended to have accidents before they could give their statements to the police.

"Well, Juarez is a free man." Alex said.

"Don't worry Alex, we'll find something to stick him with." Trivette said reassuringly, but the lines creasing his forehead told a different story.

"Anything from Gage?" Alex asked hopefully.

"Not yet." Sydney answered, barely glancing at anyone else when she spoke. "He called earlier to check in, but he still hasn't been able to get anyone to talk without raising suspicion on his part."

"All right guys, why don't we call it a day. Everyone over to my house for dinner in an hour." Walker said, trying to raise morale. He heard muttered agreements from Trivette and Sydney, took Alex's hand, and walked out of Ranger Headquarters to the parking garage.

* * *

When Walker and Alex got back to the ranch, they found their daughter Angela, and her friend Jessica sprawled on the living room floor textbooks lying open between them. Jessica had become a semi-permanent presence in the Walker ranch after the events a few months back. She even kept some of her clothes in a guest room upstairs in case she didn't feel like going back to her apartment.

"Hi mom! Hi dad! Can Jessica stay for dinner?" Angela asked as soon as she heard the door open.

Alex laughed. "Hello to you too! Yes, she can stay; Trivette and Sydney are coming over too."

"Thanks Mrs. Walker." Jessica said with a smile.

"No problem. But since we're having company, I need the two of you to help!"

Angela and Jessica got up and went to the kitchen while Walker unloaded the rest of the groceries. When he brought the last of them in, he snaked his arms around Alex's waist.

"You okay?" he asked softly.

"Not really." She admitted.

"We're going to get him the second time around. He won't get off this time." Walker said. "I won't let it happen."

* * *

Walker was out back manning the grill while the Alex, Angela, and Jessica handled the kitchen. Sydney and Trivette arrived within minutes of each other. Before long, they were all sitting at the picnic table in the back yard, feasting on steak, potatoes, corn on the cob, and other home cooked favorites. Inevitably, the talk turned to Juarez's hearing and what was going to happen.

"I'm telling you, Alex, Gage will find something." Trivette assured her.

"Find what?" Angela asked.

"Yeah, where has Gage been anyway?" Jessica echoed.

Silence followed. The adults at the table looked at each other with sheepish expressions on their faces.

"Nothing girls, it's nothing." Alex finally managed to say.

"Yeah, right." Angela said, rolling her eyes. "Come on. It's not like we're going to tell anybody."

Walker cleared his throat. "There was a hearing today. A convicted criminal got out on a technicality. We're trying to find evidence to put him back in prison. Gage included."

Comprehension dawned as Angela and Jessica read between the lines of Walker's statement.

"Who is it?" Angela asked. When no one answered, she continued. "Come on, it's probably on the news right now. You can at least tell us his name. Please…" she begged. Beside her, Jessica laughed at her friend's outright curiosity.

"Raul Juarez." Alex finally said.

"W-What did you just say?" Jessica stuttered, a horrified look on her face.

"Raul Juarez. Jessica, what's wrong?" Walker said, concern masking his voice.

Jessica looked at Angela, the same horrified look on her face and shook her head.

"No…oh God no…please." She muttered, shaking her head and squeezing Angela's hand.

"Jessica, what is it? What's wrong?" Trivette asked.

"Juarez." Jessica finally managed. "Does that ring a bell for any of you?"

Everyone at the table except for Angela sat with confused looks on their faces.

"Juarez." Sydney spoke up. "Raul Juarez, Jessica Juarez…"

"Raul Juarez is my father." Jessica finally said softly.


	2. Chapter 2

Here's the next chapter!! Thanks to all who reviewed, and to those who gave advice. I really appreciate it!

* * *

"Your father?" Alex repeated, incredulity soaking her voice. "Jessica, why on earth didn't you say anything sooner?"

"I didn't know. I haven't been paying attention to the news…I've just been so busy. Oh my God, I have to get out of here. I have to leave, right now." Jessica rambled on until Angela grabbed her shoulders.

"Jess, calm down. You're not going anywhere." She looked at her parents for confirmation. "Right?"

"Of course not. You'll stay with us at the ranch." Walker said. The mood of the meal had turned somber very quickly. "Trivette, Sydney, go back to Ranger Headquarters. I want you to start tracing Juarez's recent activity. Arrange for a surveillance team to cover him 24 hours a day. I want to know when he moves and where he moves to." Trivette and Sydney stood and quickly walked to their respective cars. Walker, Alex, Angela, and Jessica watched them drive off before quickly grabbing the dinner dishes and carrying them inside. As soon as they were inside, Jessica whirled around and talked to Alex.

"Mrs. Walker, will I have to go back? I mean, I'm legally emancipated, so that means that I can still live on my own, right?" Jessica asked softly.

"Jessica, I'll look into your case first thing in the morning." Alex said.

"What does that mean? You'll look into it? Why do you have to look into it?" Jessica fired back. "I can't go back there. I really can't. You don't understand."

"Jessica, calm down. Chances are, he can't force you to live with him. He would have to get a lawyer to overturn the emancipation and to do that, he has to prove that he is a capable father-"

"A capable father! You've got to be joking! Raul Juarez is the most pathetic excuse for a human being there ever was. You want to know what kind of man he is? I was homeschooled until he went to prison. He called himself my "teacher". Every time I'd get an answer wrong, he'd punish me. He told me it was for my own good. He said that the only way for me to learn was to feel the pain of my mistakes. Even today, I practically kick myself when I get an exam back with something less than a hundred percent on it. He did that to me. He did that!" Jessica ranted.

"Jessica-" Angela began.

"You know what he did? To make sure I always knew where I belonged? You want to see?" Jessica paused long enough to turn around and lift her shirt a few inches. There, everyone in the room could see the letters R and J on her skin. "He did that to me when I was four." She turned around and sat on the couch. "I can't go back. Please, you can't let him take me." Jessica finally dissolved into tears, sobs racking her body as she curled her arms around her knees as she sat on the couch. The Walkers looked at one another. They'd never seen Jessica cry like this. Just a few months ago, she hadn't shed a tear after she'd been held hostage in a warehouse by upwards of ten vicious gang bangers. She hadn't showed any emotion then. Not fear, not sadness, nothing. But now, here she was breaking down right in front of them. And they didn't know what to do. Finally Angela sat next to her on the couch and wrapped her arms around the shaking body of her best friend. She looked up at her parents. Her eyes said it all. They had to do something.

* * *

Back at Ranger Headquarters, Trivette and Sydney were reading through the credit card statements of Mr. Raul Juarez and watching surveillance videos of places he had visited, among other things. They were trying to retrace his steps starting at the moment Juarez left the courthouse. So far, they hadn't made much progress. Juarez had left the courthouse, stopped at a fast food restaurant, and then gone home. According to the surveillance team, he'd been home since then; the only visitor had been his lawyer. Gage hadn't been able to check in again, so they couldn't confirm what the surveillance team had said.

"Sydney, I'm going to re-read Juarez's criminal history again. Maybe I'll find something useful, a witness or something, the fourth time around." Sydney didn't answer. "Syd? Did you hear me?"

"What?" Sydney snapped her head up and looked at Trivette. "Sorry, I zoned out."

"That's okay. I just said that I was going to read through the Juarez's criminal history files. Can you hand it to me?"

"You know, Trivette, why don't you let me read it? Maybe fresh eyes will help." Sydney proposed.

"Okay, whatever you want. Let me know if you find anything."

"Yeah, of course." Sydney looked back down at the file she was reading. So far, she'd been lucky. No matter how many times the others read over the file, they hadn't yet made the connection. Fresh eyes? Yeah right. She knew this file inside and out. Every crime, every victim, she knew them all. How many nights had she spent on sites like Google, looking up Raul Juarez? And once she became a Ranger, she used all the resources this new title had to offer. Yes, she knew all about Raul Juarez. But no one could find out.

* * *

Raul Juarez was a very happy man. Most importantly, he was a FREE man. No more prison food, no more shackles, no more lack of privacy. He had all the comforts of home now. Everything was perfect. Well, almost everything. He was missing his favorite punching bag; it wasn't downstairs where it was supposed to be. But that was tomorrow's problem.


	3. Chapter 3

* * *

Sorry I took so long to update; a new semester of school just started, so I've been really busy. Here is the next chapter; thanks for being patient and enjoy!

* * *

Jessica spent the night at the Walker ranch; after she'd calmed down Angela had taken her upstairs and put her to bed. Once Jessica was asleep, Angela went back downstairs where Alex and Walker were still talking.

"Mom, tell me the truth. Will she have to go back?" Jessica asked, going straight to the point.

"I don't know Ang. It all depends on the circumstances."

"What circumstances? Her dad is a monster! That's all anyone needs to know! She's done just fine on her own for the last few years of her life, so why would she have to go?"

"Angela, it all depends. Jessica's dad would have to appeal to have the emancipation ruling overturned. That in itself is not easy to do because a teen can only be legally emancipated if there are extremely bad circumstances. Raul Juarez would have to prove that Jessica is not surviving well on her own. If he can prove that she still needs a guardian, then she may have to go live with him again." Alex explained.

"But she's done fine on her own. So he can't prove that there's a problem, so she's fine! Right?" Angela rambled.

Walker and Alex exchanged a glance. They both knew that Raul Juarez could manipulate his way around a courtroom very easily. A lot depended on the judge. If the judge was a parent, he or she would be more likely to overturn the emancipation.

"Angela, why don't you go up to bed?" Walker said. "We'll talk about this more in the morning."

Seeing that it would be fruitless to continue the conversation, Angela turned and climbed the stairs to her bedroom. She needed to think of something she could do to help. Fast.

* * *

The next morning, the Walker's were already eating breakfast when Jessica trudged down the stairs looking exhausted.

"I'm really sorry for freaking out on you last night. This is my problem, and I'll take care of it. Thank you for letting me sleep here last night. I really appreciate it." With that, she walked toward the front door; now they could all see that she had her car keys in hand.

"Jessie, where are you going?" Angela practically shouted.

Jessica kept walking, not even bothering to answer. Angela looked frantically at her parents. "You have to do something. We need to figure out what we're going to do!" After thinking everything through last night, she hadn't come up with anything she could do, other than to prove that she was competent enough to live on her own.

Walker stood and walked out the front door after Jessica. He reached her right as she opened the door to her car.

"Jessica, please wait." He said softly.

"Ranger Walker, there really isn't anything I can do. Honestly, we don't even know if he's going to try to make me go back to live with him. Again, I apologize for breaking down last night. This is my problem, not yours." She turned toward her car and started to get in. Walker grabbed her arm.

"Jessica, look at me. You and I both know that the first thing your father is going to do is try to get your emancipation overturned. We have to figure out what we're going to do to stop him."

"Ranger Walker, I appreciate it. I do. But like I said, this is not your problem."

"Yeah, well, it wasn't your problem when Angela was in danger a few months ago." Walker countered.

"It was my problem. She's my friend." Jessica challenged, tears forming in her eyes.

"Exactly. And that's why you are not alone right now. Let us help you." Jessica dropped her head and let the tears fall. She felt Walker's arm encircle her shoulders and heard him close the door to her car. He gently steered her back to the house. "Let's go eat breakfast."

* * *

Sydney was exhausted. Even after she and Trivette had left Ranger Headquarters, she'd been up late. The house felt empty without Gage around. She knew that what he was doing was important; she'd done her fair share of undercover work herself. But while Gage was off being Roger Skelos, she was stuck in the house alone with nothing but her thoughts. Once she finally had drifted to sleep, she'd been plagued by nightmares. In fact, she'd awoken this morning to find herself in a tangle of sheets, sweat pouring out of her body. Now, she was on the way to Walker's to figure out what they were going to do to help Jessica. Sydney felt bad for the girl, she really did. But she didn't know what to do about it.

When Sydney got to the ranch, Trivette was already there, looking about as tired as she felt. As she greeted everyone in the room, her eyes slid to Jessica. The poor girl's face was drawn, and pale as a sheet. Her hands were actually shaking, and though the tears were there, they weren't falling now.

"So here's our case." Sydney heard Alex say. She turned her attention away from Jessica and toward the conversation surrounding her. "Jessica has been living on her own for the last few years of her life. She's never been arrested or even gotten a ticket. She's maintained good grades and is well-liked by her teachers. She holds a steady job, and all of her teachers as well as her boss are willing to serve as character witnesses if need be. However, in emancipation hearings, the judge usually only relies on the testimony of the parent and the child. Jessica, you're going to need to stress that you are perfectly content living on your own. Don't talk about any problems you've had, unless directly asked by your father's attorney."

Jessica nodded. She could do that. She would do that. Just then, her cell phone rang. She excused herself and went into the hall to answer.

"Hello?"

"Ms. Juarez?"

"Yes. Who is this?"

"This is Harold Kline, Judge Stinson's assistant. She has made it quite clear to me that she would like to have the hearing concerning your case as soon as possible. Is that okay with you?"

"Um, I suppose so. I would like this to be over with as well."

"Great. We'll see you today at three."

"Wait, excuse me? I didn't mean today. My father was just released yesterday, are we really doing this so soon?"

"Yes Ms. Juarez. Today at three. See you then."

Jessica heard the telltale click in her ear, signaling that the caller had hung up. Slowly, she hung up her own phone and walked back into the living room. "The hearing is today. Three o'clock." She managed to say before sinking down onto the couch.

"Okay, Jessica, its okay. It's more than okay, actually, it's good. This way, everything will be over by the end of the day, and you can put this behind you." Angela said, trying to make herself believe it.

"Jessica, who called you?" Alex asked.

"Some guy. Harold something I think. He said he was a judge's assistant." Jessica said.

"Harold Kline?" Alex asked sharply.

"Yeah, I think so."

"Judge Stinson's assistant?"

"Yes, why?"

"No reason. Just curious. Are you okay to drive? You should probably go to your apartment and take a shower. Wear something nice for the hearing. I'll meet you at the courthouse at two thirty." Alex said.

"Why are you coming to the courthouse?" Jessica asked, surprised.

"I'm your legal counsel." Alex answered, as if it were obvious.

"But you're the Assistant District Attorney. I didn't think you actually represented people…" Jessica said.

"I make exceptions." Alex said. "Now go home, and meet me at the courthouse at two thirty. No later."

Jessica stood up, hugged Angela, thanked everyone else, and walked out to her car.

After she had gone, Walker turned to Alex.

"Isn't Judge Stinson the one that…" he began.

"Yes." Alex interrupted. "She's the one with three kids."

* * *

Jessica was standing in the doorway of her apartment. The place was trashed. Literally, there was trash everywhere. There were fast food bags on the floor and in the trash can and beer bottles on the table. In the kitchen sink was an empty whiskey bottle. She slowly walked in and looked around. The whole place was trashed. It was like there'd been a huge party in her apartment last night. But she hadn't been in her apartment last night. So who had been?

Pushing those thoughts aside, she walked to her bathroom and turned on the shower. She didn't have time to clean it all up now. She needed to shower and focus on the upcoming hearing. After she'd showered under the scalding water for almost twenty minutes, she got out and blow dried her hair. She put on her best suit, brown pants, turquoise top with a braided neckline, and a brown blazer in the same shade as the pants. Adding brown high heels and understated makeup, she appraised herself in the mirror. It was going to have to do.


	4. Chapter 4

Here's the next chapter, I hope you like it!

* * *

Jessica parked her car in the courthouse parking garage and walked through the huge entryway. She saw Alex pacing nervously outside the courtroom. Slowly, Jessica made her way over to Alex.

"Jessica." Alex breathed a sigh of relief.

"What? What's wrong?"

"Nothing, nothing. I was just concerned; I started thinking that we should have sent someone back to your apartment with you."

"Alex, it's okay. Nothing happened. Although, I think someone broke in last night…"

"What?! Why didn't you call us?" Alex exclaimed.

"I didn't have time! I just got ready to go and came here." Jessica tried to explain.

"Okay, well, we can't worry about that now. We'll have to deal with it after the hearing."

At that moment, Walker, Trivette, Sydney, and Angela walked up to them. They wouldn't be allowed inside the courtroom for the actual hearing, but they would most certainly be waiting when it was over. Angela made a beeline for her friend and immediately wrapped her arms around her. "It's all going to work out." She assured her. Jessica felt Alex gently pulling on her arm. It was time. With one last glance back at her friends, Jessica followed Alex into the courtroom to face her father for the first time in four years.

* * *

Raul Juarez turned as he heard the doors to the courtroom open. He saw that blond bitch of an Assistant District Attorney. Following her was his daughter. His Jessica. She really hadn't changed that much, which was nice. She still had dark hair that fell to just past her shoulders. Same dark eyes, same face in general, actually. When he looked closer, he could detect more subtle differences between this young woman and the child he knew four years ago. Suddenly, Jessica met his stare. Immediately, her eyes flashed a burning hatred that he knew had existed for most of her life. The burning hatred that was so much fun to mess with.

He watched Jessica until she sat down on the far side of the table with Alex Cahill-Walker. Raul settled back into his chair contentedly. After the hearing, he would walk out of here with his daughter at his side. He was sure of that.

* * *

"All rise for the Honorable Judge Stinson." The bailiff exclaimed. After the judge had come in and everyone had been seated again, the hearing began.

"Your Honor," Raul's lawyer began. "My client is here today to gain custody of his daughter by overturning the previous decision to legally emancipate her as a minor. My client was recently declared a mistrial, and wishes to make up for the lost time he spent in prison. We are confident that Your Honor will rule in favor of reuniting father with daughter."

Alex's eyes were full of contempt as she stood to deliver her opening statement. "Your Honor, my client has lived on her own for the last four years of her life. She has taken care of herself beautifully. Her grades are above average, and she holds a steady job. Furthermore, my client has no desire to return home with her father, the same father that terrorized her as a child." Alex sat down and squeezed Jessica's hand.

Stuart Hertzman stood again. "Your Honor, I would like to call Jessica Juarez as my witness please."

Judge Stinson looked at Jessica. "Ms. Juarez, if you please."

Jessica stood and walked to the stand. After being sworn in, she settled herself in for what she was sure would be a brutal line of questioning. And so it began.

"Ms. Juarez, you are currently living on your own, is that correct?" Hertzman began.

"Yes."

"And you have lived on your own for how many years?"

"Four years."

"Ms. Juarez, how old are you?"

"Seventeen."

"So you've been living on your own since you were thirteen?"

"Yes."

"And how did you support yourself? You must have had a job."

"Yes, I worked four jobs."

"But how could you have done that? The legal working age in Texas is fifteen!"

"I told my employers that I was fifteen."

"Could you repeat that please?"

"I told my employers that I was fifteen."

"So you lied?"

"In a manner of speaking."

"Ms. Juarez, you were thirteen, is that correct?"

"Yes."

"So telling people you were fifteen was a lie. Would you agree?"

"Yes."

"So you lied."

"Yes."

"Good, I'm very glad we cleared that up. Now, where did you live while you were thirteen?"

"I lived in an apartment."

"Ah. But what landlord would rent an apartment to a thirteen year old child?"

"Someone else signed the lease."

"And who would that be?"

"I don't know his name."

"How could you not know his name? How did you meet him?"

"I met him on the street."

"On the street. So why did you not go and live with him?"

"He was homeless."

"I see. Essentially, you got a homeless man to rent an apartment in his name so that you could live there. Did that man live in the apartment with you?"

"No."

"I see. So you used a homeless person to further yourself?"

"Objection, Your Honor. Badgering the witness!" Alex yelled, jumping out of her seat.

"Sustained. Watch yourself Mr. Hertzman." Judge Stinson admonished.

"Sorry, Your Honor. Ms. Juarez, did people ever find out that you were not thirteen?"

"Yes, eventually, most people found out."

"And what happened?"

"I was fired from all of my jobs, and the lease on my apartment was cancelled. That's when I applied to be legally emancipated."

"I see. And obviously, you were successful."

"Obviously."

"So where did you go from there?"

"I enrolled in school, got a new apartment, and got another job."

"And how old were you at this point?"

"Fifteen."

"Fifteen. I see. No further questions, Your Honor, but we reserve the right to redirect later on."

"Yes, Mr. Hertzman." Judge Stinson granted. "Mrs. Cahill-Walker?"

As Alex stood, Raul Juarez smiled. The first part of the hearing had gone extremely well. They hadn't yet had to use their insurance. But there was still time. He wasn't worried at all.

"Ms. Juarez," Alex began. "Would you say that you have been successful in living on your own for the past few years of your life?"

"Yes."

"And what makes you say that?"

"I get good grades, I pay the rent on time, and I do my job well."

"I see. Changing the subject, you were thirteen when your father was arrested?"  
"Yes, that is correct."

"So you were a minor at that time."

"Yes."

"So why, when your father was taken into custody, were you not placed under the care of Child Protective Services?"

"CPS didn't know that I was there."

"Ms. Juarez, I don't understand. Surely the police knew that Raul Juarez had a daughter."

"I would assume that they knew."

"So why then, were you not turned over to CPS?"

"They couldn't find me."

"So you were hiding? Surely your home was searched?"

"Yes, it was searched. But they didn't find me."

"Were you hiding?"

"No."

"So where were you? Were you out with friends?"

"No. I was not permitted to leave the house."

"I see. Could you please explain where you were then?"

"I was in the basement."

"Ms. Juarez, the basement was searched."

"It was not all searched. In my room, under my bed, there was a trap door. Upon opening that door, one would find stairs, leading to a closed off section of the basement. That is where I was when my father was arrested. Or at least, that is where I woke up."

"Ms. Juarez, I don't understand. What do you mean, you woke up?"

"This is the part that I don't exactly know. I don't have much memory of the nights preceding his arrest. I don't even remember being put in the basement. What I do remember is that I woke up and managed to open the trap door. When I went up the stairs, the house seemed to be empty. So I ran."

"And why did you run?"

"I ran because I was terrified of being found."

"And why were you so scared?"

"Because my father was abusive."

"Objection Your Honor! This is obviously a tactic to make my client look like a bad father. They have no proof of any abuse!" Hertzman cried.

"Your Honor, this aspect of testimony serves to prove that Mr. Juarez in incapable of being an adequate father." Alex tried to reason.

"Mrs. Cahill-Walker, do you have any proof, other than the witness testimony, that she was abused as a child?"

"No, Your Honor." Alex replied.

"Then I want no more talk about it. If Ms. Juarez is remanded into her father's custody, that will be a case for CPS if necessary. Please continue." Judge Stinson ruled.

Alex took a deep breath. "Ms. Juarez, do you want to live with your father?"

"Absolutely not."

"No further questions, Your Honor." Alex turned and sat down. Surely Judge Stinson had doubts about Raul Juarez's ability to be a father.

"Redirect, Mr. Hertzman?" Judge Stinson asked.

"Yes, Your Honor. We would like to show some photos, if Your Honor is willing."

"Of what, Mr. Hertzman?" Judge Stinson asked.

"Of Ms. Juarez's apartment. These were taken from the patio outside her apartment."

"All right. I'll allow it."

Hertzman brought the photos up on his computer, and then transferred them to the television that was in the corner of the courtroom. Jessica gasped as the photos flashed up there one by one. These had been taken after her apartment had been trashed. Her father's cronies were the ones that had broken in. And now she knew why. As a particularly damning photo came up showing the beer bottles on the table, Jessica sighed with resignation. These pictures made her look like she wasn't taking care of herself. She was now portrayed as an underage drinking slob.

"Your Honor, pictures don't lie. Ms. Juarez is obviously not taking care of herself. Apparently, she drinks alcohol as well; quite a bit, as we can see. Ms. Juarez is obviously still a child in many ways. She needs guidance and she needs supervision. The best person that can offer her those two things is her father."

Alex quickly stood. "Your Honor, Ms. Juarez wasn't home last night. She was at my house for the entirety of the night. She went home this morning to get ready and found that her apartment had been trashed. She told me this morning, before the hearing even began." Alex explained quickly. But Hertzman jumped up again.

"Your Honor, Mrs. Cahill-Walker is trying to cover up for her client. Ms. Juarez, did you file a police report?"

"No, there wasn't time."

"Oh, right. There wasn't time. Or maybe there wasn't a break-in."

"Enough!" Judge Stinson exclaimed. "After hearing Ms. Juarez testify, and seeing the pictures of her apartment, I am ready to make my ruling. It is my decision, that Jessica Juarez should be remanded into the custody of her father, Raul Juarez, until she reaches eighteen years of age. I am overturning her emancipation, effective immediately. Good day to all." With that, Judge Stinson rose and strode out of the room.

Jessica looked at Alex who was standing by her chair, an incredulous look on her face. She looked at her father, who was shaking hands with his lawyer. Slowly, she stood and began to make her way out of the courtroom to say good bye to her friends.

"Jessica!" she heard her father calling her. "Where are you going?"

"I'll be right back." She heard herself say.

"No, you'll come right now. We'll go out the back to avoid any unwanted attention." Jessica could hear the smile in her father's voice.

"Please, may I go say good bye to my friends?"

"No, darling, I don't think that's prudent. Come now. We have a lot of catching up to do."

Dutifully, Jessica turned around and walked toward her father. She flinched as she felt his arm encircle her shoulders, gently steering her through the back door of the courtroom. Her life was as good as over.


	5. Chapter 5

This is a really short chapter, but I wanted to update before I got too busy. I tried something new, and I'm not entirely sure how it worked out, so please review and let me know what you think. Thanks!

* * *

Alex walked out of the courtroom unsure of how she was going to face everyone. She had assured them that Jessica would not have to go with her father again. She'd been sure. And yet here she was, walking out of the courtroom alone. She had failed. When she walked through the double doors of the courtroom, everyone turned to her, the looks of expectation on their faces changing to looks of horror and sadness. Alex shook her head and looked down at the floor, willing the tears in her eyes to stay there. She felt Walker wrap his arms around her shoulders, holding her close. She heard Sydney and Trivette talking in low voices behind her. And she heard Angela's quiet sobs as her daughter quickly fled. Alex couldn't believe this was happening. She rarely lost a case. Ever. And even when she did, it didn't hit her this hard. But this was different. God only knew what was going to happen to Jessica now.

* * *

Angela was standing near her father when Alex walked out of the courtroom. She strained her neck to find Jessica, but didn't see her. When she looked more closely at her mother's face, she knew immediately what had happened. She felt her heart slow down so much that she thought it might stop beating altogether. This couldn't be happening. Jessica was more than her friend, she was her sister. They'd spent so many nights talking about anything and everything. Jessica had talked her out of all of the low points in her life. Jessica had tutored her so that she wouldn't fail math again. Jessica had always been there for her, whether it was to listen or to talk, she was Angela's rock. And now she was gone. Angela couldn't take it. She had to get out of here. She took one last look at her parents; her mom was curled into her father's chest. Angela ran, sobs racking her body as she went. Ironically, what she wanted to do most right now was talk to Jessica.

* * *

When Walker saw Alex walk out of the courtroom with a shocked look on her face, he knew that Jessica was gone. He was torn. He didn't know whether to go to his wife or his daughter. How could he choose which one to comfort? They were both hurting, and for once in his life, there wasn't anything he could do to make it better. Seeing his family fall apart like this scared the hell out of him. He had always been their protector. All the times Alex was kidnapped because of his work or hers, he had been to one to bring her back safely. When Angela was down about something, he had gotten her to talk about it. This should not be happening. He didn't know what to do, so he wrapped his arms around his wife and comforted her as he watched his daughter run off.

* * *

Trivette was perplexed. He still hadn't gotten to know Jessica that well, but from what Walker and Alex said, she was a great person. He knew that she got high grades in school and worked a couple of jobs to support herself. The Ranger in him kicked in, and he found himself trying to figure out what had possessed the judge to rule in favor of Jessica's criminal father. In fact, he asked Sydney that same question, but he got no response. He was worried about her; ever since Gage had gone undercover, she'd been a different person. She'd been secretive and jumpy. He knew that she was scared for Gage, but he thought that there might be something more.

* * *

Sydney almost couldn't handle the reaction of the Walkers when Alex walked out of the courtroom. She watched her boss and Alex embrace, and she watched Angela run away. Sydney was completely lost in her own thoughts; she vaguely heard Trivette say something to her, but she was thinking too hard to answer. She didn't know why the judge had ruled in Raul's favor, but she knew that it wasn't the right choice. Sydney knew what happened to people in Raul Juarez's life. She knew that it wasn't pretty.

* * *

After she'd declared her verdict, Judge Stinson rose and left the courtroom. It had been a difficult decision. The girl seemed like she could take care of herself; but really, no parent should be separated from their children for any reason. She knew that if one of her own children emancipated themselves, it would hurt her deeply. She felt bad for Raul Juarez, she really did. It must have been hard for him when his daughter started rebelling so forcefully. Hopefully, their time together now would be enough for Jessica Juarez to see that her father loves her. Judge Stinson was confident that she'd made the right decision for everyone involved.

* * *

Jessica was still in shock during the drive to her father's house. When it came into view, memories flooded her. She had wished so many times that someone would come and take her away; that someone would come and save her from her own personal hell. But it never happened. In the end, she'd had to take matters into her own hands. The same hands that were now somewhat painfully tied behind her back as she was led in to her father's bedroom, flanked on either side by two of his goons. She looked at him, lying on the bed with an extremely smug look on his face. She took a deep breath; she could get through this. No matter what, she would win this battle. After the two burly men had released her and left the room, her father stood. He walked over to where she was standing and reached out his hand to touch her cheek. Gently, he brushed her hair out of her face. She didn't flinch; she wouldn't give him that satisfaction. And so it began again.


	6. Chapter 6

This chapter has some implied violence, so proceed with caution. Other than that, thanks to all who have been reviewing; I really appreciate it!

* * *

When Roger Skelos walked into Raul Juarez's master bedroom, he was unprepared for the sight that greeted him. Though he went by Francis Gage in the real world, he was Roger Skelos in this house; he followed orders given to him by Juarez or Juarez's second-in-command, Frank Thompson. Frank had found Gage patrolling the outer perimeter of the house and told him that there was a mess in Juarez's room that needed to be taken care of. Gage had no idea what to expect. What he saw was horrifying.

Jessica was on the bed, wrapped in a sheet and nothing else. Her hands were tied to the bed frame, she was a bloody mess. Quickly, Gage made his way to the side of the bed to see if Jessica was still alive. When he found a faint pulse, he sighed with relief and began untying her hands.

"Jessica? Jessica, can you hear me? Jessica-" Gage stopped talking when he heard footsteps behind him. He saw Raul Juarez standing in the doorway wearing his pajama pants.

"You're the new man, right?" he asked pleasantly, as if there wasn't an unconscious girl on the bed.

"Yes, sir." Gage replied.

"What's your name?"

"Roger Skelos."

"Ah, Mr. Skelos. All right then. Do you know who this is?"

"No, sir." Gage lied.

"This, Mr. Skelos is my daughter. Her name is Jessica. We were just reunited today in fact. It's a touching story, really. I'm very glad that she is back where she belongs. It's an excellent stress reliever."

"Sir?"

"What you need to understand, Skelos, is that ever since she was a child, Jessica has been disobedient. She was perpetually slacking off in her studies and talking back to me and her other superiors. I want you to know that if she does that to you, you have my full permission to punish her in whatever way, and to whatever extent you deem necessary."

"Sir, I'm not sure I understand." Gage couldn't believe what he was hearing.

"If she gives you any trouble at all, feel free to do to her what you wish. I only have one request at this present moment." Raul clarified.

"And what is that, sir?"

"Don't kill her. I'm saving that privilege for myself."

"Yes, sir. That won't be a problem." Gage assured him.

"Very good. Now, please take her to her room. It's on the other side of the house. I have other business to attend to." Raul dismissed him.

Keeping the sheet in place, Gage picked Jessica up and carried her out of the room. He carried her to what he assumed was her room and put her on the bed. Checking for a pulse again, he found one. Quickly, he went to the nearest bathroom and found some bandages. He went back to Jessica's room and started gently washing her face. Eventually, she started stirring slightly. When she opened her eyes, it seemed to take her a few minutes to focus on what she was seeing.

"Gage?" She whispered, her voice extremely faint.

"Yeah. Quiet, Jess. We need to get you out of here."

"Gage, you can't. You don't have anything on my dad yet."

"Um, Jess? He just beat you. I'm pretty sure that qualifies as child abuse." Gage said.

"Listen, the judge didn't believe me the first time I said I was abused. She thought it was a ploy. You need to get something concrete that will make sure that he has to stay in prison." Jessica said, her voice shaky.

"So what am I supposed to do? Just stand by as he kills you?" Gage said angrily.

"Listen, Gage. I want you to listen closely. I need you to promise me that you will not do anything to blow your cover until you have enough evidence to put him away for good." Jessica said.

"Jessica, I can't do that. I can't, and I won't, just stand by watching him hurt you."

"Gage, you don't understand. Unless you have foolproof evidence, he will keep getting off and keep getting away with everything. As long as that's happening, I won't be safe." Jessica pleaded.

"Jessica…"

"Promise me. Please."

"What do you think you're doing?" It was Tom Haury, another man who worked for Juarez.

"I was just cleaning her up a bit." Gage said.

"Skelos, right?" When Gage nodded, he continued. "You're new here, so I'll explain it to you."

"Explain what?" Gage asked, trepidation coating his voice.

Haury shoved a finger at Jessica. "Raul insists that the girl take care of herself. She doesn't get help; she is the help. If you need anything, you find her. And when I say anything, I mean anything." Haury leered at Jessica for a moment longer before Gage spoke again.

"Sorry. I didn't know."

"It's okay. Now you do. Now get out of here, before Raul sees you."

With one last look at Jessica, Gage walked out of the room, Haury following him. Jessica heard the lock click in her door. At least they probably wouldn't be bothering her for the rest of the night. Slowly, she stood and examined herself in the mirror. Lots of bruises, but she didn't think anything was broken. Gage had cleaned most of the blood off of her face, so that was okay too. Sighing, she shuffled over to her closet and pulled out a new pair of pajamas. Apparently, her father had re-stocked her closet. She pulled on the pajamas, wincing as the shirt brushed the cuts on her face. Then, she climbed into bed and set her alarm. Her father wanted breakfast ready at six, just like old times.

* * *

Everyone had retreated to the Walker ranch after the hearing. Angela had been found in one of the bathrooms. Everyone had calmed down somewhat and now that they were more rational, they were discussing the situation.

"Angela, think about it. You'll still get to see Jessica every day at school." Walker tried to reason.

"Um, Dad? Jessica's dad homeschooled her while she lived with him. Why would he let her continue going to school?" Angela asked acidly.

"Well, we'll have Jessica over periodically; we'll make sure that she's okay." Alex said.

"Mom, get real. You saw the scars on her back. Do you really think that he's going to let her out of the house long enough to talk about what he's doing to her?" Angela challenged. When no one answered, Trivette jumped in.

"Listen, Gage is there. He'll look out for Jessica. Plus, now that Juarez is out of prison, he'll be up to his old ways soon enough, and we can nail him with something concrete. He'll be back in prison before you know it." He said reassuringly. Still, Angela didn't look convinced.

"What do you think, Sydney?" she asked. Getting no answer, she asked again. "Sydney? Earth to Syd…Sydney, are you okay?"

Sydney jerked her head up. "Yeah, I'm fine. Jessica's fine. It'll all be fine." She rambled. Everyone stared at her.

"Sydney, what's going on?" Walker asked.

"What? Nothing's going on."

"Sydney, you know that's not true. You've been acting weird ever since we got word that Juarez might be released. And you're still acting weird. What's going on?" Walker pried.

Sydney took a deep breath. "You've all read Juarez's files, right?"

"Sydney, you know we have. So have you." Trivette said, not understanding where Sydney was going with this.

Sydney's voice was low as she continued. "Twenty two years ago, Raul Juarez was a person of interest on a particularly nasty case. It was before I even joined the Rangers. He was suspected of raping and murdering a girl, but he was released because of a lack of sufficient evidence."

"Sydney, Juarez has been accused of a lot of crimes, and he's gotten away with a lot too. We're all bothered by this; it's not just you…" Trivette said.

"Will you let me finish please? If you read the file closely, you'll find out that the girl's name was Samantha. Samantha Cooke. It was my older sister. Raul Juarez raped and murdered my older sister when she was at a club celebrating her twenty first birthday. And he got away with it." Sydney looked up into the faces of her colleagues. "I couldn't tell you because I didn't want to get thrown off the case for having a personal interest in it. You have no idea how much I want to nail this bastard." Sydney realized that she was crying. Absently, she noted that the figures in the room had moved. Alex was on one side, Angela on the other, both of them gently rubbing her back and neck. Walker was squatting in front of her, holding one hand while Trivette stood on the other side holding the other one. And she knew that she had made the right decision by telling them. They really did understand.


	7. Chapter 7

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Thanks to all who have been reviewing, I really appreciate it!

* * *

"Nice job guys. Great job. Thanks for all of your help. Thanks." Walker said to each of the men he passed on the way back to his truck. They'd just taken down another of Raul Juarez's drug shipments that was crossing the border. Having Gage undercover was a great help. Every kilo they found was one less kilo on the street. Walker mentally reminded himself to tell Gage to back off a little. There had been too many times that an undercover cop was killed because the police were busting every shipment. Walker didn't want that happening to Gage.

He made it back to his truck where Sydney and Trivette were waiting. They were all exhausted; this had been a huge bust. Nevertheless, Walker had something to talk to Sydney about.

"Sydney? How are you holding up? I know Gage has been gone awhile." He said.

"I know. I'm doing fine." Sydney answered. Walker took a breath.

"Sydney, I read the file on your sister."

"I figured you would."

"You said that your sister was raped and murdered, right?" Walker said hesitantly.

"Yeah."

"On her twenty – first birthday?" Walker clarified.

"Yes." Sydney didn't understand where Walker was going with this.

"Sydney, according to the file, your sister was reported missing on her twenty – first birthday. Her body wasn't found until almost a year later."

"I know that, Walker."

"Then why did you tell us that it all happened on one night?"

"Walker, you have no idea what I went through, what my parents went through that year. It's easier for me to just say that it all happened on one night because then I don't have to think about what happened to her for that year she was missing." Sydney explained.

"I can understand that." Trivette said. "I really can."

"Sydney, there's nothing in the file about Raul Juarez being involved either. What makes you think it was him?" Walker said. He was glad that Sydney had told them what was going on, but he didn't understand why she had left so much out.

"Walker, you know Juarez's record. He was at the club that night; Samantha's friends recognized his picture. But since she was missing, they didn't have anything to hold him. Even when they found her, they knew that she'd been raped; all the signs were there, but there wasn't any DNA. Walker, I know that it was him. The police knew that it was him, but we couldn't prove it." Sydney's voice was desperate.

"Okay. Sydney, calm down. I believe you. I do." Walker assured her.

"Me too, Sydney. We'll get this guy eventually. In fact, consider each bust we make a personal attack on him. It will make you feel better." Trivette said.

Sydney nodded, unable to speak. She would bring Raul Juarez down. There was no doubt about it.

* * *

"Dad, it's been almost a month. She hasn't been at school. She hasn't called. No one has heard from her. And all Gage will say about her is that she's "fine." What the hell does "fine" mean?" Angela demanded. "We have to do something. Can't we demand to see her or something? And if he won't let us, isn't that proof enough that something is wrong?"

Walker took a deep breath. "Angela, it doesn't work like that sweetheart. Jessica's father has every right to home school her and tell her who she can and can't call. And Gage wouldn't tell us that Jessica was fine if she wasn't. You need to be patient. Jessica will be eighteen in a few months and then she can leave her father."

"Dad, you don't get it. Jessica is not fine. And she'll be dead before her eighteenth birthday if we don't do something." Angela was getting more and more hysterical.

Angela, calm down. Why don't you try calling over there?" Alex reasoned.

"I have. Every day. She's "never available."" Angela mocked.

"Angela, listen sweetie. We're all worried about Jessica. But really sweetheart, if she was in trouble, Gage would tell us in a heartbeat. He wouldn't let anything happen to her." Alex tried to reason.

"Mom, you can say that all you want, but I'm not going to believe that she's okay until I see her." Angela insisted. "Will you drive me over there?"

"Absolutely not!" Walker practically yelled. "There is no way you are going anywhere near that house."

"Why not?"

"Because Raul Juarez is a dangerous man!" Walker shouted.

"Oh! So I can't go over there because it's too dangerous, but we can't do anything to get Jessica out of living there? That's ridiculous!" Angela shouted back.

"Why don't you both calm down?" Alex said soothingly. "Angela, your father is right. It is too dangerous for you to go over there. We can't get Jessica out right now. But we can keep you safe."

"God, this is insane!" Angela cried. "When you find her body, remember what I said!" With that, she turned and ran up the stairs.

Walker and Alex looked at each other. "Walker, do you really think she's okay?" Alex asked.

"Honestly? I don't know. Gage says she's fine. That's all we really have to go off of for now. His next check-in is tomorrow, so I'll ask him again." Walker said. With that, he took Alex's hand and they went up to bed.

* * *

"Walker, what do you mean you want me to back off?" Gage asked heatedly.

"Gage, you know how this works. We've busted shipments based on all of your tips. It's time to back off just a bit." Walker said.

"Alright, Walker. Whatever you say." Gage conceded.

"How's Jessica doing?"

"She's fine, Walker."

"Alright. Be careful Gage."

"I always am." Gage hung up the phone and turned off the faucet in the bathroom. He hadn't wanted to be overheard. He understood why Walker wanted him to back off. But it was really hard. The sooner they got something on Juarez, the sooner he and Jessica could get out of here. In reality, she wasn't doing fine. She was like a slave in this house; she had to cater to the every whim of everyone that worked for Juarez. He was worried about her; every time he saw her, she looked worse. He hadn't been able to talk to her much; it would look too suspicious if he did. He felt so guilty about all of this; he'd been tempted to tell Walker to come in now, but there was something in Jessica's eyes that told him that she could hang on a little longer. It was a kind of defiance, or maybe more of a stubbornness that told him that she was hanging on. As long as he saw that spark, he would hold off on talking to Walker.

* * *

"Damn it!" Raul Juarez screamed, slamming down his phone. He'd just gotten word that his latest shipment had been stopped at the border. This was the sixth consecutive shipment that had been brought down by the Texas Rangers, led by Cordell Walker. Raul knew what this meant. He'd been suspicious for awhile, but he'd hoped it was a coincidence. He had a mole. It was probably a Texas Ranger. But since he couldn't very well accuse each one of his men, he'd have to get the information he needed from someone else. Maybe from someone who had a close relationship with Texas Ranger Cordell Walker's family. And he knew exactly who that someone else would be. And if she wouldn't talk, well, what kind of Texas Ranger would stand around while an innocent child is being beaten to death?


	8. Chapter 8

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Thanks to all those who are reviewing, especially sputrooper and moviemom44 who have loyally reviewed every chapter, I appreciate it!

* * *

Gage was having some trouble. Earlier in the week, he'd been told to go get Jessica, and bring her to one of the main rooms in the house. He did so, and when he got there, he was surprised to see every one of Juarez's men standing around the perimeter of the room. Juarez beckoned the pair forward, and they walked until they were standing right in front of him. Raul grabbed Jessica's arm and motioned for Gage to go and stand with everyone else. Gage did so, his stomach muscles clenched with anticipation at what was going to happen next.

"Jessica." Raul said in a calm voice that did not match the crazed look in his eye.

"Yes, sir?" Jessica answered coolly.

"I want you to tell me the identity of the undercover Texas Ranger in this room."

Jessica stared at him, the picture of innocence. "What on earth made you think that I would know who that is?"She asked.

Raul slapped her across the face. Hard. "Don't play with me, Jessica. I know what you've been up to while I was in prison. I know that you are very good friends with the daughter of a prominent Texas Ranger. The same damn Ranger that keeps busting my operations. So, I want you to tell me who it is."

"I can't tell you what I don't know." Jessica maintained. This time, Raul punched her in the stomach hard enough to make her double over in pain.

"Don't lie to me." He growled.

"I'm not lying. Even if I was friends with this girl, that doesn't mean I know what's going on in the world of the Texas Rangers. It's not like they tell me what goes on." Raul hit her again, and then pulled her up by her hair until they were face to face.

"Even if they didn't tell you, surely you've met some of the other Texas Rangers. You know what they look like. All you have to do is point out who it is, and this will all be over." Raul hissed.

Jessica didn't say anything. Raul threw her against the wall, and she crumpled to the floor. She didn't move.

"Does anyone want to come forward?" Raul asked the crowd mockingly. "Or are you too cowardly to stop this? What kind of Texas Ranger are you, to save yourself at the expense of another?"

Gage took this all in, staring from the mad face of Raul Juarez to the unmoving figure on the floor. He couldn't let this happen. He prepared to step forward, mentally apologizing to Sydney in his head for abandoning her. Before he stepped, he looked at Jessica one last time. What he saw stopped him. Her eyes were open just a sliver and she was looking at him. Then, she shook her head almost imperceptibly. She was telling him not to identify himself; she could still hold on. So he stopped. His trust in her had gotten him this far.

But as the week went on, these public beatings got worse. Gage had to watch day after day as Jessica was beaten to the point of unconsciousness. Raul was going crazy with finding the mole in his syndicate. None of the men that worked for him could go anywhere alone; they'd all been assigned a partner. This, Raul said, was to prevent the mole from calling in backup. Raul himself started questioning different men, trying to trap them in lies. So far, Gage had eluded detection which was good for him, but horrible for Jessica. Every day, Gage would find a way to communicate with her, whether through eye contact or body language. And every day, she managed to tell him to hold on.

Raul, however, was getting very frustrated. His daughter was more stubborn than he thought she would be. She kept saying that she didn't know who the mole was. And whoever it was, they obviously didn't have a problem watching her get beaten on a daily basis. But he had already started a new course of action.

* * *

Alex had decided to take Angela shopping to take her mind off of things. Their relationship had been kind of strained in recent months, even before everything had happened with Jessica. On the drive there, Alex and Angela spoke some, although it was mainly Angela expressing her anger at how the situation was being handled.

"I just think that there is more that we could be doing." Angela insisted.

"Angie, I've told you. We're doing everything we can."

"That's what you keep saying, and you know what? I'm not buying it mom. I'm just not. You've disliked Jessica from the start after what happened that one night we went out. I've recovered from that, and it wasn't her fault to begin with. And after everything she did for me, I would think that we should be able to do something for her. But yet, I seem to be the only one that is trying to help her right now."

"Honey, you know that's not true." Alex said soothingly.

"What's not true? The part where you didn't used to like her? Or the part where you won't help her now?"

"I'll admit that I didn't like her at first. But I care about her now just as much as you do."

"Whatever. I'm going to stop in the bathroom. Be right back." With that, Angela turned her back on her stunned mother and walked to the bathroom. When she came out, Alex wasn't where Angela had left her. She looked around a bit, but she didn't see her. Angela pulled out her cell phone and called her mom. When Alex didn't pick up, Angela started to get worried. Surely Alex wasn't so mad at her that she would leave her here. After waiting a few more minutes, Angela called Walker.

* * *

"Okay Angie. We'll be right there."

"What's up Walker?" Trivette asked.

"Alex took Angela to the mall. I guess they had a fight and Angela went to the bathroom, and now she can't find Alex." Walker explained, concern coating his voice.

"You think something's wrong?"

"I have a bad feeling about this, Trivette." Walker confessed.

"Ah, famous Cherokee intuition at work." Trivette joked. "Should I call Sydney?"

"Yeah, have her meet us at the mall. I'll meet you in the garage."

Trivette dialed Sydney's number, but got her voicemail. "Sydney, its Trivette. Alex is missing; meet us at the Timberland Mall. Thanks." With that, he walked out the door after his partner.

Walker and Trivette met a very worried Angela at the entrance to the mall. "I don't know where she went. We fought and then when I came out of the bathroom, she was gone. I've tried calling her cell, and she doesn't pick up." Angela fretted.

"Ang, calm down. We'll find her. Trivette, didn't you call Sydney?" Walker asked sharply.

"She didn't pick up. I left her a message." Trivette said.

"Try calling her again." Trivette did.

"Still no answer." He said.

"Trivette, call DPD and have them send a car to Sydney's house. I don't like how this is sounding." Walker said.

* * *

Gage, along with everyone else, had been summoned to the main room again. He walked in, expecting to see Jessica by Raul's side, but she wasn't there. Immediately, Gage was more apprehensive than normal. Suddenly, Frank Thompson walked in; he was followed by two men, each carrying something in their arms. Gage was too far back to see what they were carrying, but he soon found out.

"As you all know, I am trying to figure out the identity of the man who has infiltrated my organization. My daughter knows the identity of this man, but she refuses to tell me. So, I've brought incentives." He motioned toward the figures in the men's arms. Gage realized now that they were people. "These young women will be staying with us for awhile. I am in charge of what happens to them. I cannot make myself clearer than that. That's all. You may go." Gage walked out of the room slowly, trying to catch a glimpse of who the women were. When he finally did, he almost collapsed. Lying there, unmoving, bound, and blindfolded, were Alex and Sydney.


	9. Chapter 9

As always, please let me know what you think!

* * *

"Bad news, Walker. DPD just went by Sydney's house; the door looks like it's been kicked in, and there's no sign of her." Trivette said somberly. "The crime scene techs found some blood in the bedroom; it's on its way to the lab now." Trivette had just gotten off the phone back in Ranger Headquarters. He, Walker, and Angela had driven back there after finishing up at the mall.

"Okay. For right now, we need to assume that one person is responsible for this. Let's go through the files and see if Sydney was ever a witness against someone that Alex prosecuted. We need to figure this out." Walker said. He sat back in his chair, rubbing his hand over his brow. Why was this happening? Why now? He was now two Rangers down, his wife was missing, and his daughter looked like she was about to have a breakdown. And who could blame her? She'd just lost her best friend, and now her mother was missing too.

"Ang?" Walker called softly.

"Yeah?"

"Do you want me to have someone take you home?"

"Are you serious? Why would I want to go home now? I'm not going anywhere." Angela insisted.

"Sweetie, I really think –" Walker began.

"Dad, listen. Right before Mom was taken, she and I were fighting. I said some horrible things to her. And now, she's not here so that I can take them back. So don't give me this crap about waiting at home. I'm not going anywhere!" Angela cried, finally dissolving into small sobs. As Walker went to her, Trivette watched the scene sadly. He didn't know how to comfort his friend. He didn't know what to do, except his job.

After a few hours, Walker and Trivette had a stack of files between them. Most of the people they came up with were either dead or in prison. That left about four different possibilities. Three of these, however, were a trio of people that Sydney had busted robbing a convenience store. That left Walker and Trivette with one major contender: Michael Stricker. Stricker had been busted for running a drug ring that specialized in prescription drugs. Sydney had been the one to finally bring him in, and Alex had put him away. He'd just gotten released from Huntsville three weeks ago. Right now, he was their best bet.

* * *

"Mr. Stricker, Texas Rangers, open up!" Trivette yelled, banging on the door.

The door opened and a well-dressed man peered out. "What can I help you with, Rangers?"

"Mr. Stricker, may we come in?" Walker asked calmly. They hadn't been able to get a search warrant for this. Stricker had to let them come in on his own.

"I haven't done anything wrong." Stricker said pleasantly, still blocking the door. "I've turned my life around."

"That's fine Mr. Stricker. It's just that we're looking for some missing women. Would you mind if we came in and looked around?" Trivette asked.

"Look all you want. I haven't done anything wrong." Stricker said, opening the door wide enough for Walker and Trivette to step through. A thorough search of the house assured them that Alex and Sydney weren't there. Despondently, Walker and Trivette walked back to the truck.

"What now Walker?" Trivette asked.

"I don't know Trivette. I do know that I need to go talk to Angela right now though." They'd left Angela sitting at one of the tables back at Ranger Headquarters after she refused to leave once again. Chances were that Alex would not be coming home tonight. And Walker had to break that news to his daughter.

* * *

Alex was confused. She was sure that she'd opened her eyes, but she couldn't see anything. She realized that she was lying flat on a surface of some kind, and for some reason, her arms were above her head. Alex tried not to panic, but she wasn't doing very well. Forcing herself to take deep breaths, she slowly sat up and maneuvered herself until she was sitting up against the wall. When she did that, she started trying to move her hands. They were handcuffed, and she could feel that there was another chain attached to them as well. She followed that chain to the point where it ran into the wall. Alex tried to organize her thoughts. She was blindfolded and chained to a wall somewhere. How had this happened? She remembered taking Angela to the mall – where was Angela? Alex remembered her going to the bathroom, and while Alex was waiting, someone had grabbed her arm and started pulling her away. They told her to be quiet and not make a scene. They'd put her in a van, and the last thing she remembered was a pinprick in her arm. Now, she couldn't stop thinking about Angela. She hadn't remembered seeing her in the van. Angela had to be okay. She just had to be. Just then, she heard someone moving around next to her.

"Angela? Sweetie, is that you? Talk to me." Alex begged.

"Alex?"

"Sydney? Is that you?"

"Yeah." She too was blindfolded and chained to the wall. The only difference was that Sydney had woken up with a stabbing pain in her head. She touched her chained hands to the back of her head, wincing as they made contact with the wound back there. She remembered that she'd been in her apartment, getting ready for work when she'd been hit in the head. She knew that she hadn't heard her attacker, which meant that he was probably a pro. What she didn't know was where she was, or who had taken her. These were things that she needed to figure out.

"Sydney? Are you okay?" Alex asked.

"Yeah, I think so. Are you?"

"Yeah. Where do you think -" Alex broke off as she heard footsteps approaching. Both women prepared themselves for the worst.

"Both of you stand up now!" Alex heard a gruff voice say. As Alex struggled to get to her feet, she heard Sydney next to her doing the same thing.

"Now turn around and face the wall." The voice ordered. Alex did so; not knowing what was going to happen next. Suddenly, she felt someone's hands stroking her body. She cried out and the man slapped her. "Shut up!" Alex felt his hands on her hips, on her waist, on her back. It seemed like his hands were everywhere. Suddenly, she heard a thud and the hands were gone. What the hell was going on? She felt hands on her again, but this time they were softer, gentler. This made Alex calm down immediately. The hands were reaching for her wrists, and Alex heard the jangle of keys being tossed around. And was that Gage's voice?

Sydney heard Alex struggling with an unknown attacker. Then she felt hands on her body and she felt someone grab her wrist. Instinctively, she tried to twist out of the man's grip, but she stopped when he put his face next to hers and whispered, "Hey! Cut it out Shorty, it's me." It was Gage. Sydney immediately stopped struggling. Gage was trying to unlock the cuffs when Sydney heard a loud thud that sounded like a body hitting the ground.

"Gage?" she said frantically.

"Nice one." She heard him say. Gage finished unlocking the cuffs and she heard him throw the keys to someone else. With shaking hands, she pulled the blindfold off. What she saw stunned her. Gage was standing in front of her, a worried smile on his face. Behind him was a body lying on the ground. Further back was Alex, similarly chained to the wall. But standing next to Alex was Jessica, who was unlocking Alex's handcuffs.

When Alex was free, she pulled her blindfold off and saw Sydney, Gage, Jessica, and another body. "What is going on?" she asked.

"Well, it's pretty obvious." Jessica said. "You're here, Gage and I just saved your asses, and now we're going to leave." She finished sarcastically. However, Jessica's tone didn't match her physical appearance. First off, she was extremely thin, and she seemed slightly out of breath. Her hair was in a ponytail, which only emphasized the bruising on her face. She was dressed in jeans and a tank top, and her feet were bare. They could all see the bruises and cuts that cascaded down both of her arms and her back.

"Where are we?" Sydney asked.

"You're in my father's basement."

"Why?"

"Listen, he knows-" Jessica cut off abruptly. They all stood quietly, listening to the approaching footsteps. Gage looked at Jessica, who shook her head. "There's no way." She said sadly.

"Are you ready?" Gage asked.

"Always." Jessica smiled grimly.

Sydney and Alex had no idea what was going on. They watched in horror as Gage went to Jessica and grabbed her around the waist, yelling at her all the while. Suddenly, Raul Juarez walked in. Gage stopped yelling, and Jessica kept struggling quietly while Raul took in the scene.

"What happened here?" Raul asked in a deathly calm voice.

"I went to the john, and when I came out, he wasn't where I'd left him." Gage said, motioning to the figure on the ground. "He'd said something earlier about coming down here, so I came down thinking I'd find him. When I came down, he was on the ground, and she was trying to get up the stairs with the women." Gage lied.

Alex and Sydney stared. What was going on? They watched Raul Juarez motion with his hand for one of the men to go chain Sydney and Alex back up again. They watched another man grab Jessica out of Gage's arms and pull her roughly to the side. Raul Juarez stepped forward menacingly. He pointed his gun at the body on the ground and pulled the trigger. Alex and Sydney both jumped at the sound. Juarez turned to them.

"Ladies. My name is Raul Juarez. I know that you already know my daughter, Jessica." He turned his head to where she was standing among another group of men. "I'm very sorry for how you have been treated. I gave explicit orders that no one was to touch you." He continued. "Now, you are probably wondering why I've brought you here. You see, I have discovered that there is an undercover Texas Ranger in my operation." He paused, gauging the reactions of the women in front of him. "I know that my daughter knows who that person is, but for some reason, she refuses to tell me."

Everything made sense now. This was why they were here; they were leverage. This was why Gage had lied about what had happened in the basement; he was protecting himself. And this was why Jessica looked so bad; she was protecting Gage.

"And now," Juarez said, "I have some questions that need answers."


	10. Chapter 10

Here's the next chapter...I know I already updated once today, but I went ahead and put this one up as well. Enjoy!

* * *

"Walker, we've got nothing. There has got to be something that we're missing." Trivette said.

"I know, Trivette. I know." Walker said, rubbing his brow furiously. There weren't enough words to describe how helpless he was feeling right now. He was supposed to protect his family. If he couldn't do that, what kind of man was he?

"Walker, why don't you go home and get some sleep?" Trivette suggested. "Go home and see your daughter. She needs you right now too."

Walker surprised Trivette with his answer. "You're right. I'll see you tomorrow." Without another word, Walker got up and left.

Trivette sighed. He knew that Walker needed sleep. He knew that Angela needed Walker. But there was still work to be done. And so he turned to his computer and continued searching for any possible person who would hold a grudge against Sydney and Alex.

* * *

"I'm so sorry, how incredibly rude of me. I haven't properly introduced myself to you. I am Raul Juarez. You may call me Raul." This statement was met with silence from Alex and Sydney. Raul cleared his throat. "You know the polite thing to do would be to introduce yourselves in response." When neither Sydney nor Alex spoke up, he slowly walked over until he was standing in front of Sydney. Sydney glared up at him. Raul drew his fist back and punched her. Sydney let out a gasp of pain, and everyone could see the black eye that was already beginning to blossom there. "I said, answer me."

"Sydney...Sydney Cooke." She managed, finally deciding that she should not give her last name. Nodding at her answer, he turned to Alex.

"Alex Cahill-Walker." She said her voice full of contempt.

"Ah, are you by any chance related to the infamous Ranger Walker?" Raul asked. When Alex didn't answer, he hit Sydney again.

"Yes. I'm his wife." Alex answered quickly.

"Wonderful. Absolutely wonderful." Raul mused, looking from one woman to the other, a strange glint in his eye. Raul turned and started to walk to where Jessica was standing, until he heard Alex talk again.

"You said you had questions? Listen, I'm an Assistant District Attorney, if you let us go now, I can help -" Alex stopped abruptly as Raul smacked her.

"I'm not interested in your help, unless you tell me what I want to know." Raul snarled. "I'm tired of asking the same questions, and getting no new answers. That's why you're here."

"Why do you think we'll have the right answer?" Sydney asked.

"Oh, I'm not assuming that you'll have all the right answers. But I know who does." He turned to face Jessica, and started walking toward her again.

"So why do you need us?" Alex said quickly. Both she and Sydney were anxious to keep Raul away from Jessica. She really didn't look as though she could even stand up much longer, let alone take another beating.

"Why do I need you?" Raul asked. "I need you because this -" he paused, aimed his gun at Jessica's kneecap, and pulled the trigger. The sound of the shot and Jessica's cry of pain were almost instantaneous. "This is not working." Sydney and Alex stared in horror as Jessica collapsed to the ground, only to be roughly pulled up again by a burly man standing next to Gage. Sydney could swear that she saw Jessica shake her head at Gage as she clutched her bleeding leg. "Now," Raul continued, "You have approximately a half an hour before I want my answers." He turned and beckoned for the other men to follow him up the stairs. The one supporting Jessica let go of her, and she fell to the ground again.

After all the men had gone, including Gage, Alex and Sydney both tried to go to Jessica, but the chains holding them to the wall were too short.

"Jess? Are you okay?" Alex asked hesitantly.

"Peachy. Just peachy." Jessica answered. She even managed something resembling a smile, which gave Sydney and Alex some reassurance. "I'll be right back."

"What? Where are you going?" Alex asked worriedly.

"Well, in case you haven't noticed, my leg is bleeding profusely, and I think that blood works better inside my body. So I'll be right back." Jessica deadpanned. Even though her face was pale, it was obvious that she still had a lot of fight left in her. They watched as Jessica managed to drag herself up the stairs.

"Alex, are you okay?" Sydney asked.

"Yeah, I'm okay. Are you?"

"I've had worse."

"What do you think he's going to do next?" Alex asked.

"I don't know. But I do know that it won't be nice." Sydney said.

"Yeah. I know." Alex said.

They stopped talking when they heard footsteps coming down the stairs, but it was only Jessica. She was carrying what looked like a t-shirt, tweezers, and a bottle of rubbing alcohol. Sydney and Alex watched as Jessica used these tools to remove the bullet, clean the wound, and make a tourniquet around her knee. No sooner had she finished, that they heard footsteps coming down the stairs again. Raul, Gage, and a few other men walked down the stairs. One of them went straight to Jessica and pulled her into a standing position. He pulled her arms behind her back and cuffed them there, then continued holding her up by her shoulders. Without looking at Sydney or Alex, Raul talked to Jessica.

"Jessica, here's how this is going to go. I'm going to ask you a question, and if you don't answer, your friends will pay the price. Understand?"

Jessica glared up at him. "Yes."

"Yes…?"

"Yes, sir." Jessica said putting as much contempt into the last word as possible.

"Very well. Do you know the identity of the undercover Texas Ranger in my operation?"

"I've already told you that I don't." Jessica said.

Raul aimed his gun at Alex's shoulder. "Are you sure?"

Jessica looked at Alex. "Yes." She flinched as Raul fired his gun. Alex screamed, but when Jessica looked, she didn't see any blood. She looked back up at her father and saw anger etched in every line of his face. He bent down until his face was right in front of hers.

"Next time, I won't miss. That's a promise." He whispered. "Would you like to reconsider your answer?"

Jessica looked at Alex again. "Yes. I know the identity of the undercover Texas Ranger." She gasped as Raul punched her in the stomach. When she doubled over, he hit her with the butt of his gun. Her legs gave out, but the man holding her grabbed her hair and held her up again.

"That's for lying to me, bitch." Raul snarled. He punched her again, and her nose started to bleed. "Now, who is it?"

Jessica didn't answer. This time, Raul aimed his gun at Sydney. "I promised." He said.

"Okay. Okay. I'll tell you." Jessica managed to say. She was breathing heavily and her lip was bleeding. "It's him." She said.

"Him? Him who?" Raul asked, finally dropping his gun.

"Him." Jessica said, trying to hold back a smirk.

"Which him?" Raul snarled.

"Well, you know, I'd show you, but it seems that someone had the bright idea to put my hands behind my back. That really inhibits my ability to point to who I'm talking about." Jessica said sarcastically.

Sydney, Alex, Gage, and everyone else stared at her. As nervous as they were, Alex and Sydney couldn't help but smile. Gage looked nervous but resigned. They all watched as Raul hit Jessica again and again, but she just laughed. Frankly, Alex was afraid that she was losing it. Why was she antagonizing him so much? Finally, Raul told the man holding her to un-cuff her. He did so.

"Now, show me who it is." Raul said.

Keeping her eyes on her father, Jessica raised her unshaking hand and pointed.


	11. Chapter 11

This is the new version of Chapter 11, I got some excellent suggestions about how to make it more believable, so I went ahead and tweaked some things here and there. Please let me know what you think!

* * *

Sydney and Alex flinched every time they heard a scream from upstairs. Something horrible was happening up there, and while the screams were terrifying, they were both sure that they didn't want to know what was really going on. Actually, both of them were still in shock over what had happened. When Jessica had pointed out the man who was undercover, she hadn't pointed to Gage, but to another man. With a snap of his fingers, Raul's men had grabbed and he didn't have a chance of getting away. They'd dragged him upstairs, along with Jessica, and left Alex and Sydney in the basement once again.

"What do you think he's doing to him?" Alex asked.

"Who cares?" Sydney answered. "Whatever it is, he probably deserves it."

"Do you think he'll find out that she lied?"

"Probably."

"What's he going to do with us?""

"Alex, I don't know. I don't know anything more than you do, okay?" Sydney snapped.

"I know. I'm sorry." Alex apologized.

"It's okay." She paused as they heard another scream from above them. "Why do you think she did it?"

"Why who did what?" Alex asked.

"Jessica. Why'd she protect Gage? And more importantly, why did he let her? I mean, that goes against almost everything Gage has ever said that he stood for. Has he really changed that much?" Sydney wondered aloud.

"Oh, Sydney, I don't think that has anything to do with it. Did you see Jessica shake her head at Gage earlier? This was planned between them. Knowing Jessica, she had some kind of scheme in mind."

"Yeah. I guess. Hey, we should probably try to get some sleep." Sydney said, lying down on the ground. Alex followed suit, and both women were silent as another scream pierced the quiet of the house.

* * *

"Walker, check this out. DPD found a body right off the highway outside Dallas. The man's been identified as Tom Haury."

"Tom Haury…I've heard that name before." Walker said.

"Tom Haury is - was a major player in Raul Juarez's operation. But here's the interesting part. The body showed signs of torture, and there was a bullet in both of his knees and his shoulders."

"Tough way to die." Walker said.

"Yeah, no kidding. Here's the thing. Years back, there was an undercover Dallas cop in the operation. Juarez found out, and the cop's body was found in the same area, with the same exact bullet formation. Walker, I think Juarez knows that there's a cop in his operation. And I think he thought it was this Haury fellow." Trivette said, growing more and more excited with each word.

"But why would he think that?" Walker asked. "What evidence does he have -" Walker stopped as comprehension dawned.

"Walker, just listen. What if Juarez found out there was a cop undercover in his clan? What if he needed to talk to people who could tell him who that was?"

"People like Alex and Sydney." Walker finished.

"Exactly. Walker, I've gone through every single database that I can think of, and I can't find any connection to anyone who is out of prison with the means to take Alex and Sydney. Walker, I think that Raul Juarez took them."

"Trivette, you might be onto something. But if that's true, why hasn't Gage called?" Walker wondered.

"That I don't know. Maybe he couldn't get a chance yet. But if he's there, I'm sure he's looking out for them." Trivette assured him. "I've already got the warrant pending. The chopper's fueling. Backup is standing by. We'll be there in two hours."

Just then, the phone rang. Walker answered, but no one on the other end spoke. Then the line went dead.

* * *

Alex and Sydney were awakened by a shout followed by a loud thumping noise. They opened their eyes in time to see Jessica's body falling down the stairs and crashing into the opposite wall. Raul Juarez was directly behind her and he looked livid. Frank Thompson followed him, somehow able to look menacing and gleeful at the same time. Behind him was Gage, but something was extremely wrong. Gage's face was bloody, and his hands were pinioned awkwardly behind his back. There was a man on either side of him, each holding one of his arms. When they got down the stairs, Thompson went to Jessica and pulled her up. She appeared to be unconscious, and she looked worse than she had the night before. Sydney and Alex watched as Thompson took a pair of handcuffs from his pockets and cuffed Jessica to one of the ceiling beams in the basement so that her feet were barely touching the ground. Since she was unconscious, she was literally hanging from her wrists, and blood was already starting to trickle down her arms. The men holding Gage forced him to his knees and put their guns to his head. Finally, Raul spoke.

"I have a bit of interesting news for you. Mr. Thompson found this young man making a phone call earlier this morning. Upon further investigation, Mr. Thompson discovered that this man had called Ranger Headquarters, specifically Texas Ranger Cordell Walker. Thus, it appears that this man is our undercover Ranger. This means that all of you lied to me. And now, you will pay the price." Raul walked over to where Jessica was standing and slapped her until she woke up. When she did, she managed to get her feet planted firmly enough to support at least most of her weight. Raul walked to a corner in the room. No one could see what he was doing, but when he came back, he was carrying a baseball bat.

The reactions were instantaneous. Gage tried to struggle to his feet, only to be hit on the head with the butt of one of the guns and forced to the floor. Each man holding him held him there, one with a foot in his neck, and another with a foot on his back. They kept their guns trained on him. Alex and Sydney immediately started protesting, only to be silenced by one glare from Raul. He bent close to Jessica's face, and whispered, "You will never lie to me again." With that final statement, he swung the bat at Jessica's torso. Everyone in the room heard the audible crack of her ribs. She started coughing, and blood was dripping out of her mouth. Raul drew the bat back again, this time aiming at Jessica's injured leg. There was another audible crack that mingled with her yell of pain and her leg gave out and started bleeding again. Tears streamed down her cheeks as she clenched her teeth trying to stay quiet.

"Shut up! You know you deserve this!" Raul shouted.

"Stop! Just stop this. How can you do this to your own daughter?" Alex finally yelled. "You sick bastard!"

"Shut up!" Raul screamed back. "Someone shut her up." One of the men holding Gage to the floor got up, took out a rag, and gagged Alex with it. Walking back to Gage, he placed his foot in the small of Gage's back, holding him to the ground once again.

"You want to know how I can do this?" Raul said. "I bet you think little Miss Jessica is a perfect little angel. You probably think that I'm the bad guy here. You want to know the truth? It's not pretty, but here it is. Jessica has been a disobedient little bitch from the day she was born." Raul hit her on one of her arms this time, and Jessica moaned. "I thought I told you to shut up! When will you learn to listen?" He motioned toward one of his men who promptly punched Sydney in the stomach. "I want you to be quiet, do you understand?" He turned his gaze back toward Alex, who was staring at him in horror, and Sydney who was breathing heavily. "She's always had way too much attitude. I tried to home school her, to make a better life for her. And how does she repay me? By making false accusations against me and running away at the first chance she got." He hit her in the stomach again. "When I found out her mother was pregnant, we weren't married. But I took good care of her all the same." He paused and hit Jessica in the back with the bat. She moaned again, but this time, Raul didn't acknowledge it. "I let her stay here, I brought a doctor in, and I gave her everything. But the apple doesn't fall far from the tree I suppose, because her mother was an ungrateful little bitch too." Raul aimed the bat at Jessica's arms this time. She didn't make a sound this time, but her eyes were full of a mixture of hatred and pain.

No one knew what to do. Sydney and Alex watched in horror, both unable to speak, although for different reasons. Alex was crying. Sydney was lost in thought, thinking about if this was what her sister had to go through for the year she was missing. Gage figured that anything he said would just antagonize Juarez more, so they were all silent. Gage only hoped that Walker had figured out that he had called, that something was wrong. They needed help soon.

After a few more minutes of a stiff silence that was only broken by the sounds of the bat hitting bone, Jessica was unconscious again and she was just hanging limply from the ceiling. Raul finally dropped the bat and turned to Gage. "Your turn."

Gage expected to feel himself being pulled up, but instead, he remained on the ground watching Raul walk away. He stopped in front of Sydney and turned back to Gage. "It must have been very difficult for you to have your wife down here and not be able to help her. Wasn't it?" Gage glared at him from his spot on the floor. "Yes, I know all about you Ranger Gage. I know you better than you know yourself. And now I'm going to get to know your wife." Raul continued. With something resembling a growl, Gage rolled over, flinging the two men on top of him to the ground. He stood and charged at Juarez, but was stopped by Thompson who wrestled him to the ground again. Without his hands, Gage was nearly defenseless. Nevertheless, he continued to struggle frantically as Raul turned back to Sydney. He reached his hand up to stroke her cheek. Almost instantaneously, she brought her knee up between his legs, but he'd been expecting that. He blocked her leg and punched her in the stomach. Then he pushed her to the wall and pressed his body against hers. Gage watched in horror at what was happening. He struggled harder, but Thompson's grip on him was too strong. Sydney tried to pull away, but there was nowhere to go. Eventually, she stopped struggling and tried to tune out the sensation of his hands on her face. Just as Raul was moving to unbutton her shirt, they all heard frantic footsteps racing down the stairs.

"We've got company." The man yelled. "Five minutes out!"

"Damn it! You all know what to do! Go now! Now!" Two of the men ran toward Alex and Sydney. They un-cuffed them from the chain on the wall, only to re-cuff their hands behind their backs. In the brief second that their hands were free, Alex managed to pull the gag out of her mouth. Thompson hauled Gage up off the floor and did the same thing. "You carry her!" Raul said, pointing to Jessica's motionless form that had just fallen to the ground, free of the cuffs that had held her to the ceiling. Gage bent down and slid his cuffed arms under her body, picking her up easily. At gunpoint, he marched up the stairs, Thompson and Juarez behind him.

* * *

"Raul Juarez! Texas Rangers, we have you surrounded. Come out with your hands up!" Trivette yelled into the bullhorn. He and Walker were standing behind one of the squad cars that had met them at the Juarez mansion. There were upwards of thirty law enforcement people here, all with the same intention. They all held their breath as the front door opened. But what they saw made Walker cringe.

Sydney walked out first, her hands behind her back and a gun pressed to her neck by a huge man. He was holding her close; using her as a shield from any prospective gunfire. This man was Frank Thompson, Juarez's right hand man. Sydney looked okay, other than a bleeding lip and some bruises. Alex came out next, in a similar situation as Sydney. She too had a gun in her neck as well as a few bruises. Gage came out, carrying Jessica in his arms. She appeared to be unconscious, and blood was staining Gage's shirt. Whose blood it was, Walker didn't know. Everyone there watched as more men filed out of the house, most of whom were carrying automatic weapons. Juarez walked out last, gun in hand.

"Juarez! Stop!" Walker yelled.

"Stop? Why should I stop?" Raul yelled, turning himself toward Walker's voice. "It seems that I have the upper hand here." As he said that, he walked to where Alex was standing and pressed his gun into her temple. "Now, I think that we can work something out here, Ranger Walker."

"The only thing we're going to negotiate is you going to prison." Walker retorted.

"I don't think so!" Juarez yelled. At that point, Juarez's men started shooting, and everyone else shot back. Only Walker and Trivette saw the hostages being dragged into the woods. The two of them ran after the retreating figures.

* * *

Juarez had led some of his men into the woods. These were the few that were not expendable, the ones he needed for whatever reason. This was their plan.

"Thompson, you men stay here. Finish them off. I'll have the chopper ready to go in ten minutes. Be there then." Without another word, Juarez took off.

"Coward." Sydney muttered disgustedly. Thompson drew his hand back to hit her, but was stopped when he heard the sounds of the approaching Rangers. Suddenly, Walker and Trivette burst through the clearing, guns drawn. Thompson threw Sydney to the side and drew his gun, aiming it at the approaching Rangers. The other men had followed suit, and now Sydney and Alex were standing where Gage had gently laid Jessica down on the ground so that he could help. As Walker and Trivette approached, Thompson charged at him, seemingly unafraid of the gun pointed at him. He engaged him in a hand-to-hand fight. Soon it was six on three with Walker, Trivette, and Gage each battling two of Juarez's men. Walker managed to knock Thompson to the ground, and he focused his attention on his other attackers. Trivette was holding his own, dodging and throwing punches as hard as he could. Though Gage was hindered by the cuffs, he was doing okay too. None of them were paying attention to what else was going on in the clearing. Alex was kneeling next to Jessica when she heard Thompson yell.

"Hey!" Thompson yelled. "Stop now!"

Walker and Trivette glanced at Thompson, only to see that he was holding Sydney again, with a gun pointed to her head.

"I said, stop." He said. Walker, Trivette, and Gage did so. They were unsure of what to do. Gage looked like he would like to kill Thompson himself, but it was too risky to do anything while the gun was on Sydney. Alex was standing farther back, still with Jessica, watching in horror.

"Now." Thompson said. "We're going to go, and you're going to let us. He started backing away, still holding Sydney. In one fluid motion, she managed to twist out of his grip and run. He aimed his gun at her, and a shot rang out.

But it wasn't Sydney that fell. Instead Thompson crumpled to the ground. Everyone looked around, and their eyes widened when they saw Jessica lying on her stomach on the ground, with Walker's gun in hand. She'd just nailed Thompson in the back of the head. Walker and Trivette quickly got the other men to surrender while Gage and Sydney went to Jessica. Trivette had thought to grab the keys to the cuffs from Thompson's pocket, so he freed their hands. Walker radioed for a medic, all the while trying to keep Jessica from slipping back into unconsciousness.

"Jessica. Hang on. Stay with me! You've got to stay with me, or else Angela will kill me."

Jessica managed a weak laugh, but then her eyes closed. As they tried to wake her up again, they vaguely heard the sound of a helicopter flying out of the woods.


	12. Chapter 12

Sorry I took so long to get this chapter up, thanks for being so patient. The next one should be up much faster. Enjoy!

* * *

Everyone was gathered in the waiting room of the local hospital waiting to hear any news about Jessica. Sydney, Gage, and Alex all sported some bandages and Gage had stitches in the back of his head. Right now, Sydney and Gage were holding hands and talking quietly in one corner of the room. Alex had her head on Walker's shoulder, her eyes were closed, but her face was tearstained. Angela was sitting on the other side of Walker, having driven herself there after hearing the news. Her face was blank, but her foot was jiggling nervously. Trivette was pacing around the room, shaking his head every once in awhile. They all knew that Raul Juarez had gotten away. They also knew that Jessica was in very bad shape. These two things together were enough to make each and every one of them fall apart. Walker and Trivette knew that at some point, they would have to walk through that house, looking for any possible clue as to where Juarez went. But for now, they were content with letting the crime scene units handle it.

Almost simultaneously, everyone snapped their heads up when they heard the sounds of approaching footsteps. Dr. Benson walked in. Six pairs of eyes stared at him as he spoke.

"Jessica has been through some severe trauma. Multiple broken bones, abrasions, etc. There was a gunshot wound to her knee, and she lost a lot of blood. Even so, there was extensive internal bleeding; one of her broken ribs punctured her left lung. We were able to stop the bleeding, but there's always a chance that it will start again. The thing we're most worried about right now is the swelling in her brain. We'll have to monitor her very closely." When he paused to take a breath, Walker spoke.

"So what does this mean, Doctor?"

"Right now, she's in a coma, which is normal considering all of the trauma she's experienced."

"Yes, but will she be okay?" Angela jumped in.

Dr. Benson hesitated. "It's difficult to tell with coma patients. She could wake up in an hour. Or she may not wake up at all. As I said, there is extensive internal damage that could cause a lot of health complications in the future. I'm sorry for being so blunt, but I don't see much point in beating around the bush."

"Thank you, Doctor." Walker said. "Can we see her?"

"Yes, but only for a few minutes." He turned and walked toward Jessica's room, and everyone followed. Walker had a feeling that there was something the man was not telling them. When they got to the room, Walker let everyone else enter first. He had to talk to the doctor.

* * *

Angela gasped when she walked into the room. Jessica was so pale, so thin. She had wires and tubes sticking out everywhere, and there were very few places that weren't bandaged or stitched. She'd never seen her friend look so powerless. She couldn't even breathe on her own. This wasn't how it was supposed to be; Jessica couldn't be hurt like this. Jessica was never hurt.

* * *

Trivette didn't really know what to think as he looked at Jessica's broken body. Even after all these months, he still didn't know her very well. Now, he probably wouldn't ever have the chance to get to know her.

* * *

Alex felt her eyes well up when she walked in to Jessica's room. She immediately started flashing back to the basement. She kept seeing those beatings in her mind. She couldn't help but think that there was something she could have, should have done.

* * *

As ashamed as she was, Sydney wasn't thinking about Jessica when she saw her. She was thinking about Gage. They'd talked in the waiting room, but nothing profound had been said. Mainly, they just comforted each other. But Sydney had doubts about him. She didn't understand how he could stand back and let all of this happen. Yes, he was undercover, she understood that. But even when you were undercover, there were things that you didn't let happen. And a man beating his daughter to death was one of those things.

* * *

Walker too was having a hard time looking at Jessica right now. Obviously, she'd gone to great lengths, once again, to protect people he loved. He didn't know how he'd ever doubted her when he first met her. It all seemed to unfair now. The doctor had just told him that the rape kit was positive, and that it had happened more than once. Walker wanted to nail Juarez and make him pay.

* * *

Guilt washed over Gage when he walked into Jessica's room. He knew that this was his fault; he should never have agreed to stay quiet about what was happening. He was so ashamed about what had happened. He could sense the tension between the other Rangers; he was sure that they must not think much of him right now. How could they possibly understand why he did what he did? He didn't know what to do.

* * *

After their few minutes were up, everyone congregated in the waiting room again, not entirely sure of what they should do. Finally, Walker spoke.

"Trivette and I need to go to Juarez's house. We still have an investigation to conduct. Sydney, Gage, why don't the two of you go home and get some rest?" As they both started to protest, Walker cut them off. "You've barely seen each other. Go home and catch up." They nodded and walked away. He turned to Alex. "Why don't you take Angela home and get some sleep?" Alex nodded and turned to Angela, who was staring off into the direction of Jessica's room.

"Come on, sweetie."

"I can't."

"You can't what?" Alex asked, confused.

"I can't go home."

"Honey, there's nothing you can do for Jessica right now. What she needs is time to heal, time for her body to start working on its own again." Alex assured her.

"Mom, you don't understand. When I was in the hospital, she stayed with me almost all the time. She was willing to do that for me. How could I leave her now? She doesn't have anyone else." Angela explained, tears welling up in her eyes as she said the last part, realizing just how true that was.

Walker and Alex exchanged a glance.

"Well, Angela, if you want to stay with her, I don't see a problem with that, as long as it's okay with your mom." Walker said.

"That's fine." Alex agreed. "Come home when you're ready." With that, they each hugged her good bye and walked to where Trivette was standing.

"Trivette, we'll just drop Alex off at home, and then we'll go." Walker said. Trivette agreed. "Alex, are you sure you'll be okay by yourself?" Walker asked.

"Walker, I just want to go home and go to sleep." Alex placated.

"Well, I'm going to assign someone to watch the ranch until I get back." He said.

"Whatever you want, Walker." Alex said.

With one last look back at Angela, who was still staring toward Jessica's room, the three of them walked away.


	13. Chapter 13

As always, enjoy and review!

* * *

After getting permission from Dr. Benson, Angela had gone back into Jessica's room. She'd pulled a chair up next to the bed. For awhile, she just looked at her friend. What she wanted most was to hold Jessica's hand, or brush her hair back from her face. But she couldn't; there wasn't a part of Jessica that wasn't bandaged, stitched, or clipped together. So Angela had to be content with sitting, thinking, and occasionally, talking.

"Jess, you've missed so much while you've been gone. Mrs. Campbell, my English teacher? Seriously, she's got to be one of the most anal people I've even met. I mean, is punctuation really that important? Just kidding. I know it is. But still, it's so annoying to have to sit through class after class hearing about commas and periods. It was so much better when you and I sat in the back writing notes. That's why you've got to wake up, Jessie. I can't do this without you. And it's not just English; it's everything. I never realized how much you really did for me." Angela started to cry. "I'm sorry I took you for granted. You have no idea how sorry I am. This past month has been one of the hardest of my entire life. I need you to come back to me. Please, Jessie, come back. I need you." With that, Angela laid her head on Jessica's bed and sobbed.

* * *

Gage unlocked the front door, and he and Sydney went inside. They hadn't spoken for the entire ride home. It was like there was a wall built up between them. He didn't have a clue as to what she was thinking; and he didn't know how to ask. He didn't know what to do. Sydney had made a beeline for the kitchen, and he followed her.

"Do you want me to make you something to eat?" he asked her.

"No."

"Do you need anything?"

Sydney walked out of the kitchen with a box of crackers in hand. Silently, she walked up the stairs. She never liked it when people saw her cry. This was only very rarely, but still. Not even Gage. Nevertheless, he followed her up the stairs and found her sitting on their bed. Tears were streaming down her face, the box of crackers already forgotten and lying on the floor. He went to her and sat down.

"Syd, talk to me."

"About what?" she said, trying to regain her composure.

"I don't know. Everything. We need to talk." Gage stammered.

"I don't understand what happened." Sydney finally whispered. "How you could change so much."

"What do you mean?"

"How could you have let this all happen?" Sydney yelled. "You knew what he was doing to Jessica, but you didn't say one word about it. Whenever Walker asked you how she was, you said she was fine. But that's a load of bullshit, Gage. She was never fine. From the moment that damn judge overturned the emancipation, she wasn't fine. We couldn't do anything about it. You could have stopped it. You could have saved her; and if you had, she'd be okay, Alex and I wouldn't have had to go through what we did, and Raul Juarez would be in prison where he belongs! This is your fault, Gage! Why didn't you do anything? Why didn't you say anything?" Sydney was sobbing now.

"Sydney, I-" Gage started, but he was cut off.

"Do you have any idea what it was like for me to have that bastard's hands all over me? And all the while I kept wondering if that was what my sister had to go through. Do you possibly have any idea how horrifying that was for me?"

"Wait, Sydney. Slow down. What was that about your sister?" Gage asked. "You don't have a sister."

"Of course I don't! Not anymore! Not after she was raped and murdered by Raul Juarez. Did you know that he kept her for almost a year? You saw what he did to Jessica in a matter of a month. What do you think he did to her?" Sydney screamed. Gage was silent, still thinking about what his wife had just told him. "What, you don't have anything to say to me? No 'I'm so sorry, Syd' or 'I had a good reason, Syd.' You can't even say anything to me right now? Well, you know what? That's fine. Because I don't want to hear it!" Sydney ran to the bathroom, leaving Gage sitting on the bed, seemingly in shock.

After a few minutes, Sydney came out of the bathroom to see Gage sitting exactly where she had left him. The only difference was that there were tears coursing down his face now. While all she wanted to do was to stay mad, she immediately felt herself soften a bit. Slowly, she crossed the room and sat down next to him.

"Gage, I'm sorry." She heard herself say. "I didn't-"

"Stop." Gage cut her off. "I heard everything you said. And I deserved it. I made a huge mistake." Tears were still falling. When Sydney didn't say anything, Gage continued. "When I saw Jessica the first night she was there, I tried to get her to leave. She was already in bad shape; but she refused to go. She said that if we left now, before I had evidence of something other than child abuse, her father would get off again. She made me promise not to say anything. Before I could decline, we were interrupted. But I'll be damned if I didn't go along with her plan. Every day, we'd communicate somehow; even if we couldn't talk. But all I had to do was look into her eyes, Syd, and I knew that she could hold out. She had a fire in her eyes. As long as the fire was there, I told myself that she was okay. And then Juarez figured out that he had a mole. And everything got worse. Sydney, I swear to you, I was ready to give myself up. And I swear to you that it was Jessica that made me stop. God that sounds like a horrible excuse, but it's true. I wanted to nail Juarez, Syd, and so when Jessica shook her head at me, I stopped. I kept telling myself that if she wanted it to stop, she would give me up. But I think, deep down, I knew that wasn't true. I knew she wouldn't cave. But I kept going." Gage fell silent; Sydney was crying again. Seeing this part of Gage, she knew that he was still the man she loved. She'd misjudged him, blamed him for something that wasn't his fault.

"Gage, I know that it must have been difficult for you. I'm so sorry." She laid her head on Gage's shoulder. "I'm so sorry."

"In that basement," Gage continued, "watching him touch you, Syd, I felt so helpless. I wanted so much to help, but I couldn't. I couldn't protect you from him. I should have been able to, but I didn't. Can you forgive me? Please, say you'll forgive me. Please." Sydney found herself nodding into Gage's shoulder, not able to speak.

After that, Sydney and Gage both sat on the bed, holding each other, crying, and talking some more. And they both knew that they would be okay. As long as they had each other, nothing could tear them apart.

* * *

After dropping Alex off at the ranch, Walker and Trivette had driven to the Juarez mansion. They needed to walk through it and see if they could find anything the crime scene units missed. The house was still being processed when they got there, so they worked around the CSUs.

They walked through some of the upstairs rooms, the kitchen, bathrooms, and living room. Nothing seemed out of place. They moved into a different room. Jessica's room. The room was orderly. At first glance, it didn't seem like anything was amiss. But then they looked into the closet and found the bloody clothes. Even so, that was the only evidence so far. That is, until they found the ladder that Gage had told them about that led into the basement. According to Jessica, this was where she'd been when her father was arrested the first time. Walker and Trivette slowly descended the ladder, trying to adjust their eyes to the dim space. When they finally did adjust, a horror filled them. The first thing they saw was blood. It was everywhere. It was on the floor; on the walls, in puddles. Carefully stepping around the bloodstains, the pair walked the perimeter of the room. There were two pairs of chains on one wall; presumably where Alex and Sydney had been. There was a rag on the ground. Had they been gagged? But there was only one. So what was it for? Along another wall, they found a pair of handcuffs on the floor, next to a bloody baseball bat. Looking up, they saw the grooves in the ceiling where the cuffs had rubbed against it. Someone had been hung here. They walked around the rest of the room and then back up the stairs.

"My God, Walker." Trivette said. "That place looks like a scene out of a horror movie."

"Yeah, only it wasn't a movie." Walker said. "Come on; there's one more wing of the house to cover."

They walked through the house until they reached the other wing; Juarez's wing. They found his office, and rifled through it a bit, making notes of documents and records that could link him to illegal activity. After that, they walked into another room that, judging by the bed and dressers, was his bedroom.

"Pretty damn neat for a convict." Trivette said.

Walker didn't respond. There was a weird feeling in this room, like horrible things had happened here. It was different than the basement though; there, the evidence had been blatant. This room didn't look threatening. But Walker still had the feeling that whenever someone was in this room, it wasn't a good thing. "Come on, Trivette, let's look around."

Trivette went through the closet while Walker went through the dressers. Neither one found anything significant. After finishing with the dressers, Walker looked under the bed, but there was nothing there, not even dust. But something was still tugging at him; something told him that something important was waiting to be found.

"Trivette, help me move this bed over." Trivette complied, and both men noticed the floorboards at the same time. There were scratch marks around them, like they'd been pulled up numerous times. Trivette handed Walker his pocketknife, and Walker pried the floorboards loose.

There were three boxes inside the floor. Walker and Trivette lifted them out. Looking at each other, they each opened a box. What they saw shocked them.

Inside each box were about twenty videotapes, each labeled with a month and a year.


	14. Chapter 14

Here's the next part; its kind of short, but hopefully I'll have the next secton up soon. Please enjoy and review!

* * *

Walker and Trivette had taken the tapes back to Ranger Headquarters. As the lead officers on the case, it was their job to watch and document the contents of each tape. Seeing as neither Ranger was up for watching them that evening, they both decided to go home and start tomorrow morning. After Trivette drove off, Walker started to drive home, but then change his route to one that would take him to the hospital. He called Alex and let her know what he was doing, and that he wasn't sure what time he would be home. When he got there, he walked to Jessica's room. Angela hadn't called him at all throughout the day, so he knew that there was no change in her condition. While this wasn't bad news, it certainly wasn't good. Walker peered into the room and saw sitting in the chair next to Jessica's bed. His daughter wasn't moving, wasn't talking, she was just sitting there. She must have felt his presence however, because she spoke to him.

"Dad, I don't know what to do." She whispered softly.

"About what, Angie?"

"I don't know how to fix this. I feel like I should be talking to her, or holding her hand, or something. But I've tried talking to her all day, and it doesn't do any good. And I can't hold her hand; I'm afraid of hurting her. But it's hard, because I want her to know that I'm here." She explained.

Walker walked over to stand behind his daughter, and put one of his hands on her shoulder and squeezed slightly. "Angie, you're here. And when Jessica wakes, I'm sure that she'll know that you were here too." He felt the shoulder beneath his hand start to shake slightly, and knew that Angela was crying again. He knelt down next to the chair and pulled her head against his chest. They stayed like that for awhile, until Angela spoke again.

"You know, it's funny. I keep feeling like the one thing I need to do right now, the one person I need to see is Jessie. And I do see her, and I am talking to her, but it's not the same, you know? She's been there for me through everything; she's my best friend, Dad. And I can't help her. I can't help her." She said softly, tears still rolling down her cheeks. For once, Walker didn't have too many words of advice. He knew what that situation was like. He'd been there more than once. And so he stayed with his daughter.

* * *

After a few hours, Walker really thought that he needed to get home to see Alex. He hadn't had much of a chance to talk to her after this whole ordeal. Angela still refused to go home, so he conceded to let her stay at the hospital for the night. When he walked in the front door of the ranch, he found Alex asleep on the couch, covered with a light blanket. He went to her and touched her shoulder, and she awoke immediately. Seeing that it was Walker, Alex curled up into his arms as he sat down beside her.

"Where's Angela?" she asked.

"She wanted to stay at the hospital." Walker said, stroking Alex's hair.

"You let her stay there? Walker, don't you think she should have come home for the night?" Alex chastised.

"Alex, I talked to her. Being near Jessica is the only thing that is holding her together right now. She feels so helpless that all she wants to do is be by her side. And I know that you know how that feels." Walker said.

"Yeah, I know. I just worry about her. Has there been any word on Juarez yet?"

"Not yet. We have an APB out, but we haven't gotten anything yet. But what I want to know is how you are doing. You went through a lot. Do you want to talk about it?"

"I don't know what there is to talk about, Walker." Alex said quietly. She felt like she'd cried enough, but every time she pictured Jessica, the tears started again.

"Alex, you know that I know that that is not true. You can talk to me. You know that." Walker said, kissing the top of her head.

That did it. Alex started crying softly but she didn't say anything.

"Honey, you know that talking about it will make it better. You need to let it out." Walker said quietly.

"There's just so much. There's so much in my head right now that I don't even know where to start. I just…I don't even know, Walker. I just don't know." Alex rambled. "I just keep picturing Jessica being beaten right in front of me, and I couldn't do anything about it. She saved me, you know. One of Juarez's men started touching me, and she knocked him out. She looked so weak, but there was this look in her eyes, this look that told me that she wasn't going to give up. Her eyes were so full of fire. And then how she was with Gage…Walker, they planned it all out. Or at least that's what it looked like. Gage was still playing his undercover part, and Jessica went along with it. She saved us all, Walker. But I can't help but feel like we all let her down." Alex said, finally dissolving into tears again.

For a long while, Walker and Alex both sat on the couch, holding each other. Alex eventually fell asleep in Walker's arms, so she didn't feel the tears sliding off of his cheeks into her hair.


	15. Chapter 15

Sorry I took a bit to update, but it's here now. Please enjoy and review!

* * *

Trivette arrived at Ranger Headquarters to find Walker organizing the tapes that they'd found in Juarez's bedroom. He looked at the piles of tapes and sighed; today was going to be a long day. After he put his stuff down at his desk, he went and got the television from where it was sitting in the corner of the room. He pulled it over in front of Walker's desk, and rolled his chair over as well.

"Do you want to start with the most recent or vice versa?" he heard Walker ask.

"I don't know. I suppose we have to watch all of them at some point." Trivette answered.

"Well, we don't know what's going to be on here. I have a hunch, but I can't be sure until I watch the tapes. Do you see here on the labels? They span a few years, and then there's a break before they start up again right after Juarez gets out of prison. The break corresponds with the time Juarez was in Huntsville. If my hunch is right, the DA is going to love these." With that, he sat down at his desk. "I suppose we should start at the beginning." He popped the first tape into the VCR and he and Trivette sat and watched.

The tape was horrifying. A young woman was tied to the bed in Juarez's bedroom, crying, and trying to scream through the gag that was tied around her mouth. Juarez came in, and the tape only got worse. Walker and Trivette watched as Juarez raped the woman repeatedly, and finally left her alone on the bed. Trivette paused the tape to get an accurate picture of the woman's face, and then ran it through all of the DMV records. He got a hit.

"Walker, that woman is Sarah Michaels. Her mother reported her missing and she was found a month later, obvious signs of rape. She was beaten to death." Trivette said. "The case went cold pretty fast." He hit Play again, and the Rangers watched, unable to tear their eyes away. Not all of the scenes involved sex, but many of them did. Not all of them were from the bedroom either. Some were from other areas around the house, and others included negotiations between Juarez and other known criminals.

"Juarez is a smart man, Trivette. My bet is that he used these tapes to call in favors for the people he dealt with. Having these tapes gave him the upper hand in a lot of deals." Walker said. He fell silent again as the tapes continued to roll. Both men watched woman after woman being dragged into Juarez's room and tied to the bed. The interesting thing was that he kept them each for about a month. After the first week, though, he untied them, and they served him throughout the house. They cooked, cleaned, and did laundry. But after about a month, Juarez would fly into a rage, rape them one last time, and beat them to death. This happened six more times, and each time, Trivette was able to get an accurate identification of who the woman was. All of the cases were cold, or at least they had been.

Walker was silent as Trivette switched tapes. After they watched them, they would be taken to the lab to find anything that was missed upon the initial viewing. Trivette sighed as he looked at the label on the tape he was putting in the VCR. It was from seventeen years ago; they still had a lot of time to go through. Hitting Play, Trivette settled back in his seat. Again, the tape started and showed another young woman tied to Juarez's bed, gagged and crying. As the usual events transpired, Trivette ran the woman's face through all of the DMV records. Again, he got a hit.

Before he could say anything to Walker, the woman on screen started begging.

"Please, please don't hurt me. I'll do whatever you want."

At that moment, they heard a muffled cry from the entrance to Ranger Headquarters. Sydney and Gage had just walked in, and Sydney was as pale as any of them had ever seen her. As they watched, she rushed over to the television and stared at the screen.

"Oh my God." She moaned, finally sinking into a chair at her desk.

"Walker, look at this." Trivette said, turning his laptop so that Walker could see the screen. On the screen was the picture of Samantha Cooke's license. And on the television screen was Samantha Cooke begging for her life.

* * *

Sydney had refused to leave. Instead, she sat at her desk, Gage standing behind her, one reassuring hand on her shoulder. It was the same as the other women, at least at first. After a week, Samantha Cooke took over the duties of cooking, cleaning, etc. around the Juarez manse. After a month's worth of short clips from the tape, Walker and Trivette braced themselves, stealing glances at Sydney, who didn't know what was coming.

But what they expected didn't happen. Instead, Samantha Cooke kept showing up around the house, and surprisingly, she seemed well taken care of. It wasn't until the next tape that they realized that Samantha's stomach was larger than it had been before. She was pregnant.

"Oh, Sammy." They heard Sydney say, once she realized that her sister had been with child. After that, Sydney didn't say much, nor did anyone else. Everyone watched waiting to see what would happen.

* * *

About eight and a half months after Samantha had first appeared on the tapes, she came into frame again. She was laying on a bed, a doctor kneeling in front of her. She was obviously in labor. The four of them watched the birth, endured Samantha's screams. Finally, the baby was born. Apparently everything was fine, because the doctor left soon after. Juarez walked him out, and returned, taking the baby from Samantha's arms. He didn't look calm now.

"It's a girl." He said, his voice icy and calm.

"A girl?" Samantha clarified. "What do you want to name her?" She was still breathless from the delivery.

"A girl."

"Well, what do you want to name her?" Samantha asked cautiously.

"What do I want to name her? I don't want to name her anything. I don't want a girl. They grow up to be useless whores who don't have a purpose in life. I wanted a son. I needed a son!" Juarez screamed, causing the baby to cry.

With that, he literally dropped the child on the floor and proceeded to beat Samantha until she stopped moving; stopped breathing. Everyone stole a glance at Sydney; silent tears were rolling down her face.

They continued to watch as Juarez's men disposed of the body. Right before the video ended, Juarez walked over to the now silent baby who was lying on the floor.

"I have no need for you!" He yelled at the child. He placed it on the bed and lifted a pillow over the baby. As everyone watched in horror, he pressed the pillow over the babies face and held it there for a moment.

Suddenly, it appeared as though he changed his mind. He lifted the pillow and picked up the child, pressing her chest against his cheek, checking for a heartbeat. Evidently he found one, because he stood cradling the child in his arms.

"Maybe you can be useful." He whispered. "Perhaps there is hope for you after all, Jessica."

All four people watching the tape sat frozen as it ended. Sydney had stopped crying, her face was a picture of bewilderment and anguish. Gage was looking down at her, hand still on her shoulder, seemingly prepared for any reaction she might have. Walker and Trivette looked at each other, both at a loss for words.


	16. Chapter 16

Sorry for the wait! I've got exams coming up, so I haven't had as much time as I'd like to write. Anyway, please enjoy and review!

* * *

For awhile, no one moved or said anything. Everyone wanted to follow Sydney's lead, to see how she would handle the situation. Since she didn't do anything, neither did they. After awhile, though, Walker couldn't handle it anymore. Standing, he walked to where Sydney was still sitting, a shocked look on her face.

"Sydney, you need to go to the hospital." He said.

"Walker, I'm fine. It's just a big shock." Sydney said, shaking her head.

"Sydney, that's not why I want you to go. You need to go see Jessica."

For about a minute, Sydney was silent. "Walker, I don't know if I can." She said quietly.

"Why not?"

"What am I supposed to do when I get there? Just sit down next to her and pretend that I've loved her all along? I just found out that we're related about fifteen minutes ago. I can't jump right in to being her family." Sydney reasoned, eyes welling up with tears again. "Honestly? This is going to sound horrible to say. But truthfully, how am I supposed to be able to look at her without seeing my sister? I don't think I can handle that, I just don't think I can. I can't do it." Sydney dissolved into tears and buried her face in Gage's shirt.

Walker met Gage's eyes indicating that he should say something. Gage bent down until his face was level with Sydney's.

"Hey, Shorty, come on now. Since when have you not been able to do something? That's never happened before, and I don't think that now is a good time." Getting no response, he continued. "Syd, you're going to see your sister in Jessica. That's a fact. But that doesn't mean it has to be a curse. Jessica being here means that a part of your sister is still alive! This is a blessing, Syd, you have to realize that! Shorty, you have a niece, and not only that, you have a niece that needs you. So come on, I'll drive you to the hospital."

Sydney looked into Gage's eyes, and saw the sincerity there. She could do this. Nodding her head, she stood, waved good bye to the other Rangers, and followed Gage out the door.

After they left, Trivette spoke. "Walker, you know that we've still got about thirteen years worth of tapes left…"

"Yeah, I know. Sydney doesn't need to see them." Walker said.

* * *

"Do you want me to come in with you?" Gage asked Sydney as they stood outside Jessica's room.

Sydney took a deep breath. "No, I have to do this myself. Will you wait here?"

"Of course."

Sydney nodded and walked into Jessica's room. Hearing her enter, Angela looked up.

"Hey, Angie." Sydney said.

"Hi."

"How is she?"

"No change. They still can't take her off the respirator; they're afraid she won't breathe on her own." Angela said quietly.

"Angie, can you do me a favor? Can you go sit with Gage for a few minutes?" Sydney asked.

Sensing that something was going on, Angela stood and with one last look at Jessica, walked out of the room to where Gage was waiting.

Sydney sat down in the chair next to Jessica's bed and grabbed her hand.

"Hey Jessie. Angela says that you're still not doing so well. What's that about? I know you're stronger than this." She paused. "But that's not what I came here to talk to you about. I have something really important to tell you. Something that I just found out today. It's good news actually! Jessica I'm…I mean you're…I mean-well, you know what? It can wait, its okay. I'll wait until you're awake. I think it'll be better that way. Well, anyway, get well soon, we all miss you. I'll tell Angela to come back in now, okay?" Hurriedly, Sydney stood and left the room. She just couldn't do it.

* * *

"Gage, what's going on?" Angela asked as soon as she was out of the room.

"Ang, we just got some news today about Jessica."

"News? What kind of news? I've been here around the clock and I haven't heard anything!"

"Angela, it's not about her physical condition. We got another kind of news today."

"About her father? Did you find him?"

"No. We haven't found him yet." Gage paused. "Angela, Jessica is Sydney's niece."

"What? Are you serious?" Angela couldn't believe it.

"Yes. There were videos in the house. One of them has Sydney's sister on it. She was pregnant. Jessica was that baby." Gage explained.

"I don't even know what to say. It's incredible!" Angela stopped talking as she saw Sydney hurriedly leave Jessica's room.

"Gage, come on. Let's go home." Sydney said. "See you later Angela." Without another word, Sydney turned and walked out the door. Gage gave Angela a hug and followed his wife out of the hospital.

* * *

"Sydney! Syd, come on, slow down!" Gage jogged to catch up to her. "Hey! What's the rush?" He grabbed her arm and spun her around. He was shocked to see that she was crying. "Hey, what's wrong Shorty?"

"I couldn't do it. I couldn't tell her Gage. I didn't tell her." Sydney sobbed.

"What do you mean you couldn't tell her? I know that the doctors all say that she can't hear you, but I'm not convinced that's true -"

"Gage, that's not what I mean. I _couldn't tell her_. I couldn't make myself do it."

"Why not?"

"It's just…I don't know, really." Sydney hedged.

"Come on, Syd. I know you well enough to know that that's not true." Gage pressed.

Sydney sighed. "I just can't help but think that if I had known this years ago, Juarez wouldn't have gotten his hands on her again. She's going to hate me. I could have protected her, and I didn't! I let her down, I let my sister down. Gage, I couldn't even protect my own niece. I couldn't protect the one part of my sister that was still here. How am I supposed to face her now?" She was sobbing now.

Gage wrapped his arms around Sydney's small frame. "Sydney, you know that's not true. Jessica's gone through her life thinking that there wasn't anyone she could turn to for help. Now she has someone. She has you. Sydney, that's what you need to focus on. You couldn't help Jessie before because you didn't know. You can't blame yourself for that. But now that you do know, you can do something about it. You can help her now." Gage said.

Sydney stayed in Gage's arms for a while, letting her tears out. Part of her knew that he was right, but she couldn't help but feel guilty about everything that had happened. Now more than ever, she wanted to nail Raul Juarez.


	17. Chapter 17

Sorry it's taken me so long to update, life has been pretty hectic. Anyhow, here's the next chapter, I hope you like it. Enjoy and review!

* * *

Walker and Trivette were still watching videos. Jessica was in almost all of them. Apparently, Juarez had taken the idea of home videos and made it his own. He started home-schooling her when she was three. She learned very quickly, it was obvious that she was intelligent. Of course, when you get beaten with a belt every time you answer incorrectly, you tend to learn faster than normal. Walker found himself amazed at what Jessica survived. It wasn't just schooling that she was responsible for. The first shots of her in the kitchen were at age eight, she'd already started cleaning the house at age six. Finally, the mystery that was Jessica's past was coming together.

Juarez first raped his daughter when she was ten; he'd been molesting her for much longer. He also apparently used her to do business. She was a bargaining tool to him. There was footage of her at varying ages with over a dozen different men. Walker found his hands curling into fists at the sight of it. Next to him, Trivette was identifying the faces of the men on the tapes. They both silently vowed to bring every one of them in.

Jessica almost never cried on tape. Walker attributed this to a tape they'd seen earlier. Juarez was beating Jessica, screaming at her every time she showed a sign of pain. When yelling didn't seem to do the trick, he employed a new method. He would bring another person into the room; sometimes male, sometimes female. They obviously didn't work for him. They varied in age, race, etc. He would beat her, and when she made a sound, he would shoot the other person. Then he would yell at Jessica about how this was her fault, that she had just killed an innocent person. Eventually, she stopped crying, stopped, yelling, and stopped moaning. Every beating was met with silence. Trivette had been able to identify almost all of the victims on the tapes; they were all from unsolved cold cases in the surrounding area. There didn't seem to be any particular pattern, so the local police hadn't thought that it was the work of one person.

Trivette put the last tape into the machine. He was tired, and he knew Walker was too. But he also knew that as soon as he went to bed, images from the tapes would start, haunting his dreams all night long. And so, with a deep breath, he sat back down in his chair and readied himself for the last, and most recent, tape.

Jessica's image popped onto the screen. She was tied to a bed, the same one from all of the earlier tapes; Juarez's bed. Walker and Trivette watched as she was beaten and raped repeatedly. Then they watched as Gage came in and carried her out.

"Walker, why didn't he call then?" Trivette asked.

Walker didn't answer. He had the same question.

The Rangers watched, and listened, to the conversation between Gage and Jessica. They heard her ask Gage not to call, the heard her tell him that she could hold on. For the next few hours they watched. They watched all the beatings, and saw the looks of guilt and shame on Gage's face. But they also saw the looks Jessica would give him, the subtle nods or shakes of the head she used to communicate with him. They both saw that he was about to give himself up, but that she stopped him.

The scene from the basement was next. Gage and another man came down the stairs and walked over to where Sydney and Alex were chained. They saw Jessica come up behind the man near Alex and hit him with a pipe. And then they watched as Jessica and Gage staged the next scene, which led to more beatings. They heard the gunshot to her kneecap, and saw as she clenched her teeth while she removed the bullet. Even while her father wasn't watching, she obviously wasn't willing to risk making a sound.

The tape showed Gage getting caught making a phone call, presumably to Walker. It showed him getting caught, and beaten. And then there was the final scene in the basement. The last beating. And then everyone was gone, and Walker and Trivette were left staring at an empty, albeit bloodstained, basement. The silence was interrupted by the shrill ring of the phone.

* * *

Miles away, doctors were rushing into Jessica's room. Machines and monitors were going wild. She wasn't breathing. Her heart wasn't beating. She was dying. Angela was hastily pushed out of the way to make room for the nurses, machines, and doctors that were fighting to keep her alive. She knew she had to call everyone. They needed to get here right away.

* * *

Within a half hour, Walker, Alex, Angela, Gage, Sydney, and Trivette were crowded into the waiting room again. They hadn't been there long when the doctor came in, a grim look on his face.

"How is she?" Sydney asked, before anyone could say anything.

"She's luck to be alive right now." The doctor answered.

"What happened?" Sydney demanded.

"She was given a lethal dose of heparin. Now, heparin is a blood thinner. When it was put into her system, it caused massive amounts of internal bleeding, which stopped her heart. We were able to stop the bleeding, but there's no way to tell how much damage was done." The doctor explained.

"Why was she on heparin to begin with?" Walker asked.

The doctor took a breath. "She wasn't. She wasn't supposed to get any heparin at all, let alone a dose that high. I don't know what happened."

Everyone turned to look at Angela. "Did anyone come into the room while you were there?" Walker asked.

"No. I haven't left and the only people that have come in have been doctors."

Walker sighed. "Trivette, call dispatch. I want a guard on Jessica's room at all times. No one gets in unless we know they've been checked out. Doctor, I need backgrounds on all of your staff here as soon as you can possibly get it. Gage, Sydney, I need you guys to help me figure out which doctor did this. I want you to look for any possible connection between anyone on the staff and Raul Juarez. I'll meet you back at Headquarters." Walker ordered. He watched them leave and turned to Alex. "I'm going to need -"

"Search warrants?" Alex grinned. I'm on it.

"Angela, do you still want to stay here?"

"Of course I do. I'm not leaving." She answered, as if she were expecting an argument. She didn't get one.

"All right. Go to Jessica's room. I'll be there in a minute." Walker watched as she walked away, and started pacing the room. He didn't believe that this was an accident. Raul Juarez was nowhere near his daughter, and he'd still managed to almost kill her. They needed to find him. Fast.

* * *

Juarez hung up the phone. He was starting to doubt the competence of everyone around him. He'd found some new men to handle security on his safe house, and called in a favor. Unfortunately, that favor hadn't gone well at all. He knew it was irrational; he shouldn't be anywhere near Texas right now. The travel plans were all arranged; he had a handy new passport. But he couldn't leave until he took care of everything. He was used to things going his way, and they weren't. He was going to have to do everything himself.


	18. Chapter 18

I am so, so sorry about the long wait for this chapter. I was out of town and didn't bring my computer with me. Anyway, thanks for being patient, and I hope the chapter is worth the wait. Enjoy and review!

* * *

Angela sat by Jessica's bedside, holding her hand. There was a tube down her throat to help her breathe, and machines crowded the room, monitoring all of her vital statistics. Walker had stayed with her until the new security guards arrived, but he'd left after they'd been briefed about what was going on.

Angela felt guilty about what had happened, even though she knew the guilt was irrational. The man that had come in looked like a doctor, dressed like a doctor, and told her he was a doctor. Maybe he really was a doctor. There was no way she could have known that this guy was going to try to kill her best friend. But still. Angela couldn't get the feeling of helplessness to go away. All she could do now was sit and talk about the most random things she could come up with.

* * *

Jessica felt really strange. Floaty would be the best word to describe it. She felt weightless and free, like nothing was holding her back. She hadn't felt this free in a long time. After awhile, the floating started to go away, and pain took its place. The pain was all over; it was in her legs, arms, head, especially her head. She felt like she'd gotten hit by a truck. Why was she in so much pain? She tried to think, but her head was really cloudy. She remembered something about her father. Oh, God, her father. She remembered it all. She was trapped in his house again, and he had Sydney and Alex! She had to help them, she had to. Gage was there too, but he was undercover. He couldn't help her. She tried to clear her head, and suddenly she felt pain in her throat. The bastard was choking her! Oh God, she couldn't breathe. But she refused to die like this, so she fought back. She heard someone yelling her name, but it didn't sound like her dad. Who was it? There was only one way to find out.

* * *

Angela was panicking. Jessica had started thrashing around on the bed and Angela thought she might be having a seizure. She ran to the door and screamed for a doctor to come to the room. Then she ran back to the bed and tried to calm Jessica down.

"Jessica! Jess, Jess, can you hear me? Jessica!"

Without warning, Jessica's eyes popped open, and they were full of both terror and madness. Her eyes weren't focusing, and she was trying to pull the tube out of her mouth.

"Jessica! Jess, look at me. It's me! Angela! It's Angie, Jess. It's okay, it's just me."

Finally, after what seemed like ages, they made eye contact. Jessica calmed down some, but her hand was still on that tube. At that moment, the doctor ran in, full of apologies for taking so long, but he had to be cleared by the security guard.

"Jessica, I need to look you over, okay? Stop pulling at that tube, sweetie, it's there to help you breathe, okay? Let go of it…there you go. Good girl."

The doctor took out a small light and shined it into Jessica's eyes. He took her pulse, and checked her reflexes. Finally, he turned to Angela with a small smile.

"She seems to be okay now, which is surprising considering the earlier scare." Turning to Jessica he added, "We'll have someone come in and take that tube out, and see how you do on your own, okay?"

Jessica nodded, and the doctor left. She turned to look at Angela, her eyes welling up with a mixture of relief and pain. Oh, the pain. Her body hurt all over. But right now, she was trying to focus on the fact that she was safe. But she needed to know about everyone else, were they okay too?

* * *

By the time everyone else had gotten Angela's call and rushed to the hospital, Jessica's breathing tube had been removed. She'd also been given a dose of morphine to help with the pain. That didn't stop her from staying as alert as she could. Suddenly, the hospital room was very crowded. Alex was crying, Walker and Trivette were grinning from ear to ear, and Gage was holding Sydney's hand. He was smiling, but the two of them looked nervous. Jessica wasn't sure why, but she would talk to them later.

"How are you feeling?" Alex asked.

"I'm okay." Jessica answered, even though she really did hurt all over.

"Well, what has the doctor told you?" Trivette asked. "When are you getting out of here?"

"He hasn't been in again yet." Jessica said.

Right on cue, the doctor walked in, a smile on his face. Looking at the crowd in the room, he didn't waste words.

"Frankly," he said "I'm surprised that Jessica has woken up like this. Usually, coma patients wake up slowly, bit by bit. However, in rare cases, they will wake up without warning, which appears to be the case here. It doesn't look like there will be any permanent physical from her injuries or the heparin incident. However, you're going to have to stay with us for a little while longer, and once you are released, we'll have some major physical therapy to do. You'll probably be in a wheelchair for a few weeks. I'm looking to have you out of here within the next two weeks." The doctor concluded.

Jessica smiled. Two weeks wasn't so bad. And the wheelchair would be a pain, but she was up for anything. She was just glad that everyone was okay. However, she still had some questions that she needed to be answered. She started with the most obvious.

"Have you found my father?"

Everyone in the room exchanged looks. Finally, it was Walker that answered.

"Not yet. But we're still looking."

"The doctor said something about heparin. What was that all about?" Jessica pressed.

It was Walker who explained. In fact, he told her the whole story, starting with Gage's phone call and ending with the present day.

Jessica didn't know what to say. All she could do was look at the people in the room and recognize what huge sacrifices they'd made for her. They'd all taken huge risks. That realization overwhelmed her, and she couldn't stop the tears that started falling.

"I don't know what to say to all of you, except thank you. It doesn't seem like enough, but I don't know what else I can say. I really appreciate everything you've done for me. I don't know how to thank you enough." Jessica realized she was rambling, so she stopped talking and looked sheepishly up at the people surrounding her bed.

"You don't owe us anything, Jessica. You've helped us just as much as we've helped you." Alex said. "But right now, I think you need to rest. So we're going to go, but we'll check in on you later, okay?"

Jessica nodded, and watched everyone file out. Soon, it was only her, Angela, and Sydney and Gage who had stayed behind for some reason. Jessica smiled tentatively at Gage, who looked at Sydney.

"Gage, I'm going to go wait in the waiting room. Come get me when you're done talking." Sydney said, and then rushed out. Gage looked after her, a concerned look on his face.

"Angela, will you go see if Sydney's okay?" Gage asked pointedly.

"Sure." She squeezed Jessica's hand one last time and walked out of the room after Sydney. Gage took her seat by Jessica's bed.

"Gage, I owe you an apology." Jessica said, before Gage could say anything. "I put you in a horrible position, and it wasn't fair to you at all. I should never have made you promise not to call Walker when you knew you needed to. I take full responsibility for everything that happened. I'm really sorry."

"Jessica, listen. I don't blame you for what happened, and neither does anyone else. If anything, I owe you. You probably saved my life in there. And you saved Sydney and Alex's too." Gage paused to collect his thoughts. "None of this was your fault. None of it. So don't go blaming yourself."

Jessica was crying again; she couldn't seem to stop. Gage had no idea how much what he was saying meant to her. It was exactly what she needed to hear. But even though she heard it, and even though Gage seemed sincere, something was still bothering her.

"What's wrong with Sydney?" Jessica asked.

Gage took a breath. "I think you should ask her yourself." He said. "I'll go get her." With one last smile, Gage walked out of the room. A minute later, Sydney walked in.

"Hi." She said.

"Hi." Jessica responded with a nervous smile.

Sydney walked to the chair by Jessica's bed and sat down. Unlike its previous occupants, Sydney didn't grab her hand. Jessica didn't think that was a good sign.

"Listen, Jessica, there's something we need to talk about." Sydney began and took a breath. "Jess, when Walker and Trivette went into the house, they found a bunch of tapes. Apparently your father videotaped almost your whole life."

"Yeah, I know." Jessica surprised Sydney by her response. She had to admit, she was pretty surprised herself. This was what Sydney wanted to talk about?

"Yeah, well. I guess that it's good that you know. Anyway, we had to watch the tapes for evidence and stuff." Sydney noted that Jessica was starting to look a little panicked. She assumed that it was because of the content of the tapes. She continued. "Jessica, I don't know the best way to say this, so I'm just going to say it straight. My sister was your mother. You're my niece." She paused to gage Jessica's reaction.

For a minute, Jessica didn't say anything. Then, she looked down at her hands and said, "I know."


	19. Chapter 19

Sorry I took so long to update, I ran into a bit of writer's block. Anyway, thanks for being patient and sticking with me. Enjoy and review!

* * *

"You know?" Sydney asked incredulously.

"Yeah. I know." Jessica said again.

"But how?"

"Same way you found out. My dad made me watch that tape once. I knew my mother's name. I wanted to find out more about her. So one day when he was gone, I used his computer. I found out all sorts of things, including that she'd been listed as missing before she was murdered. I found out that she had a little sister. Years later, when I met you, I recognized your name. I knew it had to be you."

"But why didn't you say anything then?"

"I don't know, really. I guess I wasn't sure if you would have wanted to know. And even if I had told you, would you have believed me?" Jessica registered Sydney's silence. "Yeah. That's kind of what I thought. Honestly? I was scared."

"Of what?"

Jessica looked at her. "I was scared that you would hate me for what happened to your sister. I thought that seeing me, and knowing that I'm the reason she died, would be more painful for you than not knowing."

"Jessica, you can't hold yourself responsible for Samantha's death."

"It was just - you just seemed like you were happy. It seemed like you had dealt with losing your sister and I didn't want to ruin that. It was like I would be a constant reminder about what happened to her. I didn't think it was fair to put you through that." Jessica explained.

Sydney thought for a moment, and chose her words carefully. "Jess, I miss my sister. I miss her every day. I know that nothing can bring her back, but seeing you are like seeing a part of my sister that still lives. I'm just sorry I didn't know sooner." Sydney's voice trailed off as she noticed a flurry of movement outside the door. Resting her hand on her weapon, she walked over to the door. And then she heard the shouts.

"Everyone stay where you are!" This shout was accentuated by a flurry of gunshots and followed by more screams. Everyone outside the room hit the floor, some because of gunshot wounds, and others to avoid them.

Sydney dashed back to Jessica's bed. "Can you walk?"

"Hell if I know. They haven't let me out of bed." Jessica said, panicking slightly.

Sydney didn't have time to say anything else before the door to the room was flung open and the body of the guard outside Jessica's room fell in; almost half of his head had been blown away. Sydney grabbed her gun but the other men were too quick. There were three of them.

One ran to where Sydney was standing and tried to wrestle her gun away. Seconds later, she was on the ground. Another stood watch outside the door, and another was pointing his gun at Jessica's forehead.

* * *

"Reports of shots fired at Memorial Hospital. All units in the vicinity please respond with caution." The report came on the scanner as Walker, Trivette, and Gage were knee-deep in the files of contacts Raul Juarez might have made. Almost at once, they all looked up.

"Walker, I was just there a half hour ago." Gage said. "I didn't see anything."

"Come on, we need to get over there. This has Raul Juarez written all over it." Walker said, grabbing his hat and racing out of the room with Trivette and Gage on his heels.

* * *

By the time they got there, the area was cordoned off. Gage had been trying to reach Sydney on her cell phone, but she wasn't answering. They flashed their badges and walked through the organized chaos that was the parking lot of the hospital. All the other floors of the hospital had either been evacuated or were in the process of being evacuated. They walked over to the head of SWAT negotiations to get filled in on what was going on. Walker identified himself and the man started talking.

"There are an unknown number of hostages and hostage-takers. People who were able to get out said there were three or four white males with guns, but they couldn't tell for sure. They said the gunmen shot up the place and went into a room. Apparently, when people tried to run, the gunmen didn't try to stop them. There are an unknown number of casualties, and the hospital is almost completely evacuated."

"Do you know what room the gunmen are in?" Gage asked, afraid to hear the answer.

"Room 442. Patient is…" the man looked at a sheet of paper in his hand. "Jessica Juarez."

Walker, Trivette, and Gage exchanged a look. It was Juarez. And according to Gage, Sydney was in the room too.

"Have they made demands?" Trivette asked.

The SWAT guy shook his head. "We haven't been able to establish contact yet."

Walker shook his head. This wasn't good.

* * *

Inside room 442, the three gunmen, otherwise known as Tyler Johnson, Thomas Greene, and Jack Percy, were having a heated discussion.

"It wasn't supposed to go down like this." Johnson said, his voice laced with worry. "We were supposed to go in, kill the girl, and get out."

"Yeah, well, we didn't exactly count on the damn cops getting here so fast." Greene said. "How the hell are we going to get out now?" Both men looked at Jack Percy, the ringleader of the group, and the one who had been contacted initially.

"Well, he didn't say where the girl needed to be killed, so I think there's still hope. We've got both of them," he jerked his head at Jessica, who was sitting on the bed, and Sydney, who was lying on the floor, unconscious. There was a cut on her head where Greene had hit her with her own gun. "So everyone out there will be more than ready to give us a way out.

The other two men nodded their agreement. It was decided that they would wait a little while longer, and then make contact. Percy went and settled himself in a chair in the corner of the room, keeping his gun trained on Jessica while Greene walked over to Sydney.

"Don't touch her!" Jessica said. Greene just smiled, bent down, and grabbed Sydney's handcuffs. Pulling her arms behind her back, he cuffed her wrists, stood up, and walked away. Sydney didn't move.

Jessica didn't know what to do. She'd seen the guns. She wasn't afraid of pain, she wasn't afraid of death. But she didn't want anything to happen to Sydney. Besides, she was still extremely weak, so anything she tried to do probably wouldn't work very well. All she could do was lie in her bed and wait to see what would happen next.

* * *

Sydney was awake. Her head hurt, and she could feel blood trickling down her face. She heard the low murmurs of voices, and then footsteps.

"Don't touch her!" she heard, and braced herself for what might happen next. She felt a hand at the small of her back; it detached her handcuffs. Her arms were pulled behind her and the cuffs snapped on. She briefly considered jumping up right then, but she knew that there were three men, and she also knew that she could probably only get to one before the others would shoot her. Or Jessica. She hoped Jessica was okay. She didn't want to open her eyes; she would lose the element of surprise if she did. For now, she had to assume she was okay.


	20. Chapter 20

Thanks for all of the reviews I've been getting; I really appreciate all of them! Here's the next chapter, enjoy and review!

* * *

"What do you want to do, Walker?" Trivette asked. He looked at his partner, who was staring at the hospital walls as though an answer would magically appear. In reality, Walker was just thinking about how glad he was that Alex had come to pick Angela up awhile earlier.

"I'm not sure yet. Do we have the building plans?" he asked. The SWAT man pulled them out and spread them on a table. "My concern is that if we go in, they'll kill Sydney and Jessica before we get to them. Jessica's going to slow them up." Walker said. Upon hearing Sydney's name, Gage had abandoned his pacing motions in favor of joining the conversation.

"So what are we going to do, stand here?" he asked heatedly. Then he shook his head. He needed to calm down. "Sorry."

Walker nodded. We'll wait awhile longer and keep trying to establish contact. If we can't, we'll have to figure something else out." As if on cue, the phone on the table rang insistently. Walker picked up and pressed the speakerphone button.

"Yes?"

"Who is this?" a gruff voice on the other end asked.

"This is Texas Ranger Cordell Walker. Who am I speaking to?"

"That doesn't matter."

"Alright. What matters to me is getting the two women out of there safely. What can we do to make that happen?" Walker asked, trying to reason with the man.

"Here's how. We have two of them. You can have one, and then we get to take the other with us. We want a chopper on the roof of the building. After we're gone, we'll call you and tell you where to pick up the other."

"Okay, let me see what I can do."

"You have one hour."

* * *

Jack Percy hung up the phone and looked at Jessica. "Guess who we're taking with us?" Then he barked out a short laugh.

Jessica couldn't respond. Just before he'd made the phone call, he'd gagged her with a towel he'd found in the bathroom. Her hands were tied in front of her with a spare sheet. Not that she could have done much even if they were untied. She kept staring at Sydney; she still hadn't moved.

Percy walked over to where Johnson and Greene were standing.

"Did they go for it?" Johnson asked.

"Yeah. They went for it. They played it cool, of course. But really, what choice do they have?" Percy responded.

"What are we going to do with the other one?" Greene asked.

"I don't know yet." Percy said, smiling slightly. "I'm sure we can think of something. I gave them an hour. Let's just relax." With that, he settled himself back down into the chair in the corner.

* * *

Raul Juarez couldn't believe what he was seeing. He was watching a breaking news story about a hostage situation in Dallas. There wasn't supposed to be a hostage situation! The idiots were supposed to get in, pop the girl, and get out. That was all. No big deal. But no. They'd screwed things up. He knew that if they got caught, they would talk. Jack Percy made a big show of being a tough guy, but Juarez knew that he was just another average idiot. Damn. Now he had another mess to take care of. He pulled out his phone and dialed a number.

"I have a job for you."

* * *

"Walker, the hour is almost up." Gage said. "What are we going to do?"

"We can't give them what they want. We have to go in." Walker said.

Trivette and Gage nodded their assent.

"When?" Gage asked.

"Now. Before the hour ends." Walker said. He checked his gun and the other two did the same. With one last look at the floor plans, the trio headed toward the entrance to the hospital. They needed to get upstairs quickly and quietly.

* * *

"The hour is almost up." Tyler Johnson said nervously. "Do you think they're going to get it?"

"Of course they will." Percy stated confidently. "They don't have any other choice."

Unsatisfied, Johnson stepped over Sydney's inert form and walked over to the window. Staring up at the sky, he said, "I don't see -" He was interrupted as the glass in the window shattered. Johnson went down, a red circle growing on his chest. Greene and Percy drew their guns and looked around the room. Jessica was still on the bed, wide eyed, and staring at Sydney, who had finally opened her eyes upon hearing the gunshot. She'd been cut by some glass, but other than that she seemed okay. She was trying to slide herself across the floor to Jessica's bed. Percy aimed his weapon at her and she stopped.

"I didn't do it!" she said incredulously. "How could I have?" Percy shifted the aim of his gun to the door to the room, but saw no one there. Since there had been no more gunshots, he slowly crouched down and walked to where Johnson was lying on the floor. Greene followed suit. Two quick shots were fired, one hitting Percy in the forehead, the other hitting Greene in the neck. Both of them went down and stayed there. Sydney and Jessica looked at each other with almost identical looks of relief on their faces. Sydney managed to pull herself into a standing position.

"Are you okay?" she asked.

Jessica nodded, still unable to speak.

"I'm going to go get help, okay?" Sydney said.

Jessica nodded again, and Sydney turned to leave. She found her path blocked by none other than Walker, Trivette, and Gage, all slightly out of breath and all holding their weapons in front of them.

"Syd, are you okay?" Gage said, lowering his gun and walking to her.

"Yeah, I'm fine." Gage wrapped her in a huge hug and walked her over to the couch. Trivette checked on the three men while Walker went to Jessica.

Pulling the towel out of her mouth, he asked if she was okay.

"I'm fine." She said. He untied her hands. "Is Sydney okay?" she asked worriedly.

"I'm fine too, Jess." Sydney called from the couch. Trivette had found the keys to her handcuffs and unlocked them for her. Gage had gone to go get a doctor to check on Sydney and Jessica both.

"They're all dead, Walker. Three fatal shots." Trivette reported. "Here's the thing, SWAT said they never took a shot. None of their snipers were given the order, and none of them took it. Walker, our guys didn't shoot them."

Walker was confused. Raul Juarez had set this up, hadn't he? But then why had he killed his own men?

* * *

Antonio Ruiz was driving away from the hospital. His rifle was stashed safely in his trunk. He'd been a little surprised to get Juarez's call. He hadn't used him for a hit in years. Oh well. A hit was a hit. Three shots, three hundred thousand in his Swiss bank account. Not bad for a half hour's work. Not bad at all.


	21. Chapter 21

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You know, every time I start typing a new chapter lately, I intend to bring the story to a close. For some reason, my mind always ends up going in a different direction. Anyway, enjoy and review!

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Raul Juarez hung up his phone. Everything had gone smoothly. That was good. It calmed him down a little bit. That was also good. He had time to think things through a bit. There were a lot of different ways he could do what he wanted to do. But things had changed. Jessica had woken up. That wasn't supposed to have happened. Apparently, she was going to be fine. Well, why couldn't she be fine with him? To tell the truth, he hadn't really wanted to kill her. She was too much fun to have around. But he was under the impression that she was practically dead anyway, in which case, why shouldn't he finish her off himself? But now things were different. She woke up, and she was getting better. So maybe he could keep her around for a little longer.

He wasn't sure what he wanted to do, but he knew that he needed to make a decision quickly. He supposed he could call his sniper again and have him take Jessica out. There were two reasons he didn't want to do this. Number one, he'd tried having other people take her out, but none of them had been successful. Number two, he liked the idea of playing with her for awhile first. Make her ask for death before he killed her. Hell, he could get a whole group of people together, all those damn Rangers that kept interfering. Yes, that's what he would do. He'd get them all and kill them, one by one. By the time he was done, she'd be easy. It would take time though, that was the only drawback. But hey. They hadn't found him yet, what was a few more weeks?

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THREE WEEKS LATER

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Jessica's hospital room was really crowded. She was being released today. She still had a lot of physical therapy to go through, and it would take a few months before she regained full use of her leg. She was stuck in a wheelchair for now, a fact that she despised. She felt utterly helpless, a feeling she loathed. Fortunately, in a few weeks when the cast came off her arm, she'd be able to wheel herself around without any help.

She hadn't been sure of where she was going to stay. She was almost eighteen, and she really liked her little apartment. But at the same time, she and Sydney had grown extremely close over the past few weeks. It had been Sydney, her aunt, who had been with her at each physical therapy session so far. It had been Sydney who had spent hours sitting next to Jessica's bed telling her stories about her mother. They'd laughed and cried for hours on end. So when Sydney had offered to let Jessica stay there until she could take care of herself, Jessica readily agreed. When she was honest with herself, it would be nice to live with people she could trust. She really was looking forward to it.

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Angela looked at her best friend sitting on the hospital bed. Doctors were busy unhooking her IVs and pulling needles out of her arms. She'd gotten a lot of color back in her cheeks, and she was smiling, but Angela could tell that she was still in pain.

"Hey Ang, will you help me get dressed?" Jessica asked quietly. Angela nodded and hurried to the other side of the bed. Grabbing Jessica's waist, she helped her hobble to the wheelchair, and then gently lowered her into it. She knew Jessica was embarrassed that she was so incapacitated like this, but Angela was glad to help. She pushed her friend into the bathroom, and pulled out a pair of sweatpants and a T-shirt.

As she helped Jessica get dressed, Angela couldn't help but cringe when she saw the marks that still covered most of Jessica's body. Even though the bruises were mostly gone, there were still scabs, old scars, and bandages. She felt a renewed hatred for Jessica's dad. How could anyone do that to another human being?

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Walker watched his daughter push Jessica out of the bathroom. He was glad that the two were such good friends. He was immensely proud of both of them. They were having a barbecue at the ranch today before everyone got settled back into their everyday lives. He knew that Jessica still had a long road to total recovery and he was glad that Jessica was willing to let them all help.

"Are you all set?" He asked.

"Yeah." She answered. "I'm all ready to go."

"Okay. I'll go get the doctor and we'll get all the discharge papers set." With that, Walker left the room.

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Alex's thinking was along the same lines as Walker's. She too was glad that her daughter had made such a good friend. She was just sorry that there had already been so much pain in their relationship. During the weeks that Jessica had been in the hospital, she and Alex had talked quite a bit. Jessica confessed that she felt terribly guilty about what Alex had gone through. Alex admitted that she was still occasionally having nightmares. But, as she told Jessica, she couldn't deny that things could have been a lot worse. She'd reiterated that she didn't blame Jessica for any of this. Alex wasn't sure if Jessica believed that or not, but regardless, it was true. Alex firmly believed that people weren't defined by who their family was.

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Trivette watched as the doctor followed Walker back into the room and walked over to Jessica. Frankly, he thought that the checking out process was a bit of a pain. They'd already told her that she could go home, so why did they have to keep redoing her blood pressure and stuff? Trivette had enough experience with hospitals to know how annoying it all was. Jessica had to be ready to go home. Truthfully, he was starving. And Walker made the best burgers in Texas.

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Gage pushed Jessica's wheelchair out to the parking garage, Sydney following him. He was glad that Jessica had decided to stay with them, at least for awhile. He and Jessica had grown close under the most extreme of circumstances, but their relationship hadn't wavered. Like Alex, Gage didn't blame Jessica at all, and he knew that without her, he probably would have died. He had an immense amount of respect for Jessica. At seventeen, she'd been through things that most people couldn't dream of and she still had her whole future ahead of her. And a bright one at that.

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Sydney was feeling jittery. She was glad that her niece was coming to stay with her and Gage, but she was nervous still. She and Jessica had spent a lot of time together recently and grown very close. Sydney found her thoughts drifting to her sister more and more often lately, and she'd started to share memories with Jessica, who hung onto every word. It felt nice to share stories with someone. She'd kept her sister's death a secret for so long that she couldn't remember ever sharing stories about her with anyone, not even Gage.

She still had a major concern. It had been three weeks since anything suspicious had happened. Raul Juarez hadn't tried anything else. As much as she wanted to think that he was gone for good, she couldn't do it. She knew that he wouldn't rest until he'd done whatever he wanted. Either he would try to get Jessica back, or he would try to kill her. Really though, either way, she'd die. Sydney refused to let that happen. She would not let Raul Juarez take another piece of her life away.

Sydney watched Gage gently lift Jessica out of the chair and into the backseat of their car. As Sydney folded the chair, her eyes fell on a small box in the corner of the trunk. Hesitating for only a moment, she grabbed it.


	22. Chapter 22

Hi all! So, I haven't gotten very many reviews on the last few chapters, even if you didn't like a chapter, please review and let me know what you think I should do to make it better. Anyway, here's the next part. Enjoy and review!!

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Sydney settled herself in the front seat of the car, box in hand.

"What's that?" Gage asked, starting the car.

"Just something I picked up for Jessica." Sydney answered.

"You didn't have to get me anything." Jessica insisted from the back seat.

"Don't fret, Jess. I think it will come in handy." Sydney said. There was something wrong about the tone of her voice though, it was as if she was trying to sound normal, but she hadn't quite done it.

"Alright. Whatever you say, Sydney." Jessica didn't feel comfortable calling her Aunt Sydney yet. For some reason, it just felt weird. She'd expressed this concern earlier, insisting that she didn't want to hurt anyone's feelings. Sydney had assuaged her concerns, telling her not to worry about things like that.

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The car ride was mostly quiet on the way back. Jessica stared out the window, mulling things over in her head. Sydney and Gage were doing the same.

By the time they got to the Walker ranch, Walker had already started the grill and Alex was busy carrying assorted dishes out of the house. Trivette hadn't arrived yet.

Sydney got Jessica's wheelchair out of the trunk, and Gage lifted her out of the car. Jessica was still extremely light; she'd lost a lot of weight while she was with her dad. He picked her up easily, and set her gently in the chair. He looked at Sydney.

"You good, Shorty?"

"Yeah." She smiled at him.

He nodded and bounded over to where Walker was grilling. Jessica and Sydney watched him and laughed. Gage never could resist food.

Jessica noticed that Sydney was still holding the little box in her hands. Seeing Jessica's curiosity, Sydney handed her the box.

"I think that this could be useful." She said quietly.

Jessica opened the box and stared down in disbelief. "Are you serious?" she asked.

Sydney nodded. "Very."

Jessica looked at the box again. "I guess you're right." She sighed and placed the box in the bag that was attached to the side of the chair. "Thank you." She said. "For everything."

Sydney smiled at her, and Jessica had the feeling that it was the first real smile she'd seen in a long time. "Come on; let's go stop Gage from taking the burgers right off the grill." There was something in Sydney's eyes that started Jessica off laughing. And once she started, Sydney started to laugh too. And soon, they couldn't stop.

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"How's Sydney?" Walker asked Gage as they stood at the grill.

"I think she's going to be okay, Walker. She and Jessie have been talking a lot. Both of them had a lot of stuff to work through. But look at them. They're going to be fine." Gage insisted. At that moment, Sydney was pushing Jessica across the lawn, both of them were laughing hysterically.

"What's so funny?" Gage asked.

"Oh, you know." Sydney said. That set the two of them off laughing again.

Gage shook his head. "You guys are strange. Hey, where's Trivette? I don't think he's ever been late to a meal. Ever."

"His car is coming now. I can see it." said Alex, who had just walked out of the house carrying a plate of brownies. Angela followed her, a bowl of potato salad in hand.

Sure enough, Trivette parked his car and all but ran over to where everyone was standing.

"Hey, sorry I'm late!" he said.

"Where were you?" Walker asked, a sly grin on his face. He had a general idea.

"Well, I ran into a friend when I walked out of the hospital and we started talking." Trivette said.

"Mm-hmm." Walker said. "Was this friend's name Adrienne? And did this friend give you her number?"

"Well, I mean. Come on now, Walker. Of course she did." Trivette stammered. Everyone laughed again and went to sit down as Walker started scooping burgers off the grill.

They all settled down around the table and started piling food on their plates. As usual, they all laughed as Gage piled four burgers, a scoop of coleslaw, and a scoop of potato salad between two buns. Gage, however, was completely oblivious to their laughter, and proceeded to try and stick the entire thing in his mouth. Needless to say, he failed, and that just set everyone off again.

Everyone was having a great time. They were all laughing and talking about anything and everything. When they had finished eating, Gage, Walker, and Trivette cleaned the grill while Alex and Sydney carried dishes inside. Angela pushed Jessica over to the pastures and called her horse over.

"So, Sydney. How are you doing?" Alex asked. Sydney had confided to Alex that she was having nightmares still, and Alex had confessed the same thing.

"I'm okay. They're getting a little better, I suppose, now that I know Jessica is going to be okay."

Alex nodded. "I understand. It doesn't help that that bastard is still out there." Alex said disgustedly.

"I know what you mean." Sydney agreed. "A big part of me wants to think that he's picked up and left town, but the other part of me knows that that isn't true."

Alex nodded in agreement. "But you know that no one is going to rest until we get him. No one is going to stop looking." Sydney noted that it sounded as though Alex was trying to reassure not just Sydney, but herself as well.

They washed dishes in silence for a few more minutes before Sydney spoke again.

"Walker mentioned that you went to Jessica's apartment to grab some of her stuff? Do you have it?" Sydney asked.

"Oh yeah. I almost forgot. It's upstairs. I can go get it." Alex said.

"No, it's okay. I've got it." Sydney smiled and walked upstairs.

Alex washed dishes for a few seconds more when she heard someone move behind her.

"Did you find it?" she said.

"Find what?" she heard a man's voice say. Alex whirled around.

"Did you miss me?" Raul Juarez asked. He had a gun, and it was pointed straight at her. "Don't make a sound." He grabbed Alex's arm and spun her around so that she was in front of him. Her back was pressed up against him, and he slid an arm in front of her and around her shoulders, holding her there. She felt the barrel of his gun press against her temple.

"Walk." He said.

Slowly, they made their way out the front door, and down the patio steps. The boys were still at the grill, talking. Trivette noticed them first. He quickly drew his gun. Walker and Gage were alarmed and spun around to see what was going on. They drew their weapons too. None of them had a clear shot. They would have to shoot Juarez in the head, otherwise Alex would get hurt. But they didn't dare do it now while Juarez was moving. One missed shot, and Alex was dead.

"You! Get over here!" Juarez screamed at Angela and Jessica. Neither of them realized that he was even there until he yelled. They both turned quickly.

"Jess?" Angela asked quietly.

"NOW!" Juarez screamed again.

Angela grabbed the handles of Jessica's chair and slowly pushed her over the lawn. She stopped next to Walker, Trivette, and Gage, who were still standing with their guns outstretched. Jessica's arm was dangling over the side of the chair. Angela could tell that she was nervous.

"Very good." Juarez was calm now, which was even scarier than when he was yelling. "Now, put your weapons down. Slowly, put them down."

"Come on, Juarez. You know we can't do that." Walker said calmly.

"Really?" They heard a click as he cocked the gun, still holding it against Alex's head. She flinched. "Are you sure?"

Walker looked at him murderously. "Okay. Alright." He nodded to Gage and Trivette to put their guns down as well. They dropped them on the ground and then slowly straightened up again.

Juarez looked at Jessica, who now appeared to be fiddling with her sweatpants.

"Come here." He barked.

"Excuse me?"

"Come here now."

"I can't."

"What do you mean, you can't?"

"Um, hello? Have you seen me? I happen to be sitting in a wheelchair. Generally, when someone's in a wheelchair, it means that they can't walk." Jessica snapped.

The others couldn't suppress small smiles. Jessica knew how to push his buttons.

"Fine, stay there. It's probably better anyway." Juarez reasoned.

"Why?" Jessica asked. This couldn't be good.

"It's easier to watch from over there. This way you won't miss a thing." Juarez said. "You know, I've been planning this for awhile now. When I heard that you made it out of the house barely alive, I decided that I should just finish you off before I left for good. But that damn doctor didn't do his job. And then, the three goons I hired couldn't do their jobs either. So I had them killed too. And then I realized that it would be much more satisfying to kill you myself. But then, I found out that you were going to live after all. And I decided that you should come live with me again. I've missed you darling. But you know that you need to be punished for leaving again. And so I want you to sit there. You sit there, and you are going to watch as I kill each of the people that you have let protect you. You really should have known better. You're a coward, Jessica. You have hidden behind these damn Rangers for long enough. And now you have to face the consequences of the situation you've created." Raul turned his gaze to Angela. "You, take their handcuffs." He motioned to Walker, Trivette, and Gage. Angela slowly did. "Now cuff them to the table. Tightly." He ordered. Angela hesitated and looked at her father. Walker nodded slightly. "I said, NOW!" Juarez shouted. They all heard Alex whimper softly as the gun dug deeper into the side of her head. Jessica watched in silence, still fiddling with her sweatshirt.

Gage, Trivette, and Walker were worried about Sydney. Where was she? She'd been in the house with Alex, but Juarez hadn't mentioned her. Was she okay? Was she their only hope in getting out of this? These thoughts were running through all of their heads as Angela was forced to cuff their hands behind their backs to the picnic table.

When Raul was satisfied that they were tightly secured, he motioned for Angela to sit down at the end of the table. She did so, and Juarez started to talk again.

"Jessica, you will watch every minute of this. And you will know that this is your fault. And now, I'm going to kill them all, starting with her."

"No, you can't!" Jessica yelled, at the same time Walker yelled "NO!" Juarez just smiled and pushed Alex away from him. She turned to face him and seemed rooted to the ground she stood on. After what seemed like ages, she turned to run. She didn't make it more than three steps.

BANG. BANG. Two shots. Alex hit the ground.


	23. Chapter 23

Hey everyone, sorry I took so long to upload this...but I had to create some suspense, right? Anyway, here is the next part. Enjoy and review!

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Trivette could not believe what had just happened. He heard the shots; he saw Alex fall; he heard Walker's unnatural scream of grief as the picnic table they were chained to shook as he tried to pull himself free. Trivette's eyes moved across the yard and paused on Alex's body that was in a crumpled heap on the ground.

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The scene unfolded quickly. So quickly in fact, that it took Walker a few minutes to process everything that happened. He pulled against the cuffs that held him to the table and screamed when he heard the shots. He too saw Alex fall to the ground. He took in Raul's outstretched arm. After the shots, he half expected him to turn the gun on Angela. Wasn't this his intention? Walker was surprised when this didn't happen. The scene seemed to unfold in slow motion right in front of him.

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Angela screamed at the sound of the gunshots. She watched her mom fall. But something was wrong. One of the shots had come from right next to her. The other came from across the yard. She turned her head sharply to the left and saw Jessica. Her arm was outstretched, a small gun in hand. It was aimed at where her father was standing. Angela turned her gaze back to her mom, who was still on the ground. But she was moving. Angela ran to her.

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Gage's eyes were fixed on Sydney. She had run out of the house in a low crouch, sidearm in hand. As Juarez pushed Alex away, she straightened up and aimed her gun at Juarez's head. She fired, and her bullet hit Raul straight on in the back of his head. At almost exactly the same time, and red dot appeared on the left side of his chest. His knees buckled, and he was dead before he hit the ground. Gage watched as Sydney run over to where Juarez was lying. She kicked his gun away and bent down to check for a pulse. Her eyes met his. They were full of relief.

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Sydney was upstairs looking for Jessica's clothes when she heard the front door slam.

"Alex?" she called. There was no answer. And then she heard the shouts. She sprinted to the window and opened the curtain slightly. She saw Juarez holding Alex, and she saw the guys with their guns out. Then, she saw Angela wheel Jessica over, and the guys put their guns down. When Angela started chaining them up Sydney ran down the stairs.

She tried to stay as low as she could and she ran to a position where she could get a clear shot. Juarez pushed Alex away, and she turned to run. She watched Juarez raise his arm. Nodding slightly, she aimed and fired. She felt for a pulse, and when she didn't feel one, the relief that consumed her was overwhelming. She looked up and met Gage's eyes.

She walked over to him, grabbing the keys to the cuffs along the way.

"Are you okay?" she asked.

"Yeah. You?"

"I'm fine." She bent down and unlocked the cuffs. Gage stood and wrapped his arms around her, holding her tight. They stayed like that for almost a minute, until they heard Trivette clear his throat.

"Um, guys? A little help here?"

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When Raul Juarez pushed her away, Alex wasn't sure what to do. If she was going to die, she was damn well going to die looking her killer in the eyes. But at the last second, she turned. Maybe she could run. She knew she couldn't outrun a bullet, but maybe she could throw off his aim a bit. But then she tripped. She tripped on her own shoelace! She hit the ground hard, and she heard the bullets whizzing by. She stayed still on the ground, waiting for the pain to hit. But it never came. She opened her eyes, and saw that Angela was kneeling next to her.

"Mom? Are you okay?"

"Yeah. I think so, anyway." Alex slowly sat up. She saw Juarez's body lying on the ground. He appeared to be dead. Finally, Alex looked at Walker. His eyes were full of concern. He was still leaning forward as he had been when he was trying to get free. Sydney had just unlocked Trivette and now he had the keys. He released Walker, who promptly stood up and ran to his family. He enveloped them both in a huge hug.

"Are you guys alright?" he asked.

Both Alex and Angela nodded their answers, too full of emotions to answer verbally.

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As soon as Jessica saw heard her father's voice, she knew that something big was going to happen. She dropped her hand into the side bag of the wheelchair where she'd stored the gun that Sydney had given her earlier. She grabbed it and tucked it into the folds of her shirt. She kept watching what was happening, but she wasn't sure when to shoot. She knew how to use a gun, of course, just aim and shoot. But she knew that if she missed, they were all dead.

And then, she saw Sydney run through her field of vision. Their eyes met, and Sydney nodded. Now was the time. Aim and shoot. Jessica raised her arm at the same time that Raul raised his. She fired.

Her bullet hit him in the chest at almost the exact time Sydney's hit him in the head. He crumpled to the ground, and Sydney made sure he was dead. Jessica lowered her arm. Her father was dead. She'd killed him. Her and Sydney. Jessica thought she might be in shock. She'd never shot anyone before. It was a strange feeling, knowing that you've taken a life. But some part of her was so relieved that words couldn't express it. She'd fantasized about this day so many times. Not in this exact way, of course, but about her father dying in general.

She didn't know whether it was Sydney's bullet or hers that had truly killed him. But it didn't matter. He wasn't coming back. She was safe. This was her thought as Sydney hugged her close. She was safe. They all were.

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Sadly, this is the end of the story. Please let me know any final thoughts you have, as well as any suggestions you might have for another story, either with Jessica or without. Anyway, thank you all so much for reading! Please review one last time!

Mandy


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